Your own star
by McCullers7
Summary: Set 2 years after the Dollhouse. Paige McCullers is at Stanford, trying to move on from Emily Fields who is now in a relationship with Sara harvey. Emily, a sports psychologist student at UPenn, gets an unexpected summer work placement. What will happen when their paths unexpectedly cross. Paily fic . Set mostly in the PLL universe with a twist!
1. Chapter 1

**Okay so I've been begging for someone to try and sort out the horrifying mess that is Paige and Emily's storyline so I've decided to try myself on my first ever go at writing . I have currently just watched the episode where Emily kisses Sara (cue heather hogans raccoon face) and i recently found out the Sara will be around after the time jump (I'm assuming as 'Mrs' Emily fields) so therefore this is my time jump set two years after dollhouse shinanigans. Im not going to go to deep into the whole A theme just a few mentions here and there. Im going to try and stick to the original stories with (fingers crossed) a Paily happy ending. I am a huge Lindsey shaw/ Paige McCullers fan so i want to do her justice. i do love Emily however i feel the character has really neglected paige through-out every season and i can't help but feel Paige deserves more. I am however a huge Paily fan and want them OTP. I have two possible endings to this story so I'm going to gage it on what you guys review as to where i take the story. I do not own any characters or anything relating to PLL this is strictly Fanfiction. In addition to noting that this is my first story i Must also let you know incase i get a few things incorrect that i am British trying to use American words/slang/spelling and probably failing miserably so please try to bare with me on that. This is a fairly short chapter and i have the next slightly longer ready to go, once i hopefully get some interest ill post them up**

 **Happy reading and I'm open to reviews good or bad**

 **RB**

Emily

A small yet persistant stream of light invades the previously darkened room, Emily rolls over but is met by an empty space which is still warm from her girlfriends presence. "Em, can you get down here please, breakfasts getting cold!" her mothers call a gentle reminder that any chance of a lay in was off the cards. She wipes her eyes and stumbles off the bed looking for something more appropriate to wear other than her barely existing gym shorts and Rosewood sharks vest. She settles on an oversized hoodie,tugging it over head relishing in the perfumed smell that was becoming her girlfriends signature scent.

Turning the stairs she is met by the overcoming smell of pancakes and french toast, her gaze sets on the blonde sat at the counter reading over a magazine whilst studying the food presented to her by Pam. "Good morning sweetie how did you sleep?" she walked over to Emily and wrapped her into a tight embrace before whispering something to her ear " any nightmares?" Although Pam Fields had always tried to cover up the amount of worry that still washed over her after the events of the dollhouse 2 years ago she still found herself bombarding the girl with questions hoping the girl would open up to her. Emily often felt smothered with always been reminded by the events that scarred her deeply but she managed to brush them off, if she had learnt anything from the her dramatically terrifying high school years it was that she was never going to show anyone her weaknesses, not again. "I'm fine mom, honest" she pulled away from her mothers touch before smiling to the grinning girl at the counter. "Right duty calls, ill be back late, so girls I'm trusting you can take care of dinner, theres more fruit in the fridge and Sara, honey please eat something" she was met by a nod from the girl before she continued to browse over her magazine. After kissing her daughter goodbye and grabbing her keys Pam rushed through the door shutting it hastily behind her. Watching her mother proceed to reverse out the driveway through the front window Emily turned around to lock eyes with the pixy haired beauty slowly making her way towards her. Emily smiled as Sara wrapped her in her arms before leaving a chaste kiss upon her lips, "Good morning gorgeous" a grin spread across her face as she leant in to return the favour, murmuring into the girls lips "it is now" in a instant Sara picked Emily up and threw her onto the couch before jumping on top of the tanned beauty, tickling her as she squirmed laughing hysterically beneath.

Paige

For what seemed like an everyday occurrence Paige woke up before her already early alarm clock, her wide eyes staring mercifully at the clinically white walls It was barely approaching 5 am, "1..2….3" she mumbled under her breath before like any morning she heard foot steps approaching her door, shuddering at the loud knock. It was all part of her routine. Since getting into Stanford Nick would wake her up at 5am every morning to get some early morning practice in, it was hardly a requirement but Nick had found it necessary as she was bordering on becoming a crucial part to the Cardinals team and she was not about to slack now. Before she could answer to the intrusion Nick had made his way through the now open door. Already dressed in one of his many sharp, tailored suits he stood silent as the rested his hands upon his hips studying his little girl before raising his eyebrow at the pair of swim goggles positioned on her nightstand. Without hesitation and failing to notice the lunge from Paige, he picked them up before sitting at the end of her bed, running his thumb over the 'EF' initials clearly marked in biro. Looking up and sighing deeply he finally turned to his daughter "when are you going to let this go Paige? Its only you whose hurting in this, you'd be stupid to think that Emily hasn't moved on" Paige winced at the comment, she knew herself that Emily had probably found someone else, of all the people back in Rosewood she kept in contact with Caleb and Pru, both of which skirted around the topic when it came to asking how Emily was doing. "Don't you think i know that dad?" she answered trying to keep her tone from getting her in trouble "i know.. ok, i get it, she was always going to be the one to move on and i was always going to be stuck here…like this" she gestured to herself whilst trying to choke back the sobs becoming obvious in her voice. Nick sighed again deeper than the one previous before scooting over to Paige's side. He had never been the type of father that showed affection, in fact paige could only recall him hugging her after winning meets or when she found out she had received a full ride to Stanford, but right now she would just have to settle for his hand ghosting over her knee, she looked down desperately blinking away any tears that may have been trying to escape. "Look kiddo, despite what you may think, i know you better than anybody. Everyone you meet you talk so highly of Emily, after everything that happened you still have that admiration for her, i admire you for that" He paused only to stroke a piece of falling hair away from Paige's eyes " but you've got to realise that _this_ is your life now. She's not here, she's not the 'star of the team.' You need to think more of yourself and realise that you deserve better.. its time to be your own star" Paige looked up briefly into her dads glossy eyes, he hesitantly looked away avoiding Paige's gaze before standing up and straightening out his suit and clearing his throat. "right your mother and i will be working late tonight, so no staying up past 10 and make sure you get a decent meal in you" he says whilst retreating to the door "I don't want you sinking at that meet tomorrow and theres a few people there you're going to want to impress." Before he could fully disappear paige interrupted "Dad..?" he paused whilst returning to look at his daughter, Paige opened her mouth but nothing came out instead opting to smile as they both simultaneously performed the 'McCullers head dip' and Nick closed the door behind him.

Hearing her dads SUV start up outside Paige finally made her way downstairs, wearing her college warm ups and clutching her iPod. The warm California air hit her as she stretched. The street was quiet as always with little wind and the distant sounds of cars passing on the next street over. She plugged in her earphones and started to increase her pace before heading into a quick jog. She breathed heavily as she passed her 5th mile, the trail she took had led her to the other side of town, littered with cute coffee shops and antique dealerships. This was all new to her, although she had lived there for just over a year and a half she barely ventured out, not that her mom would let her explore, she still remained cautious since the lighthouse incident and Paige's strict training programme always served as an excuse to keep busy. With an overcoming thirst haltering her from finishing her run she decided to take her pick at the coffee shops, opting for the quietest looking across the street. The bell rang above her as she entered before she was greeted by woman in her late 20's. "Hey there" the woman uttered whilst restocking the coffee machine, "Wont be a moment, i'll be right with you" Paige nodded before giving the place a once over and pausing the overbearing music coming from her iPod. "Right now thats sorted what can i get you?" the woman asked with a beaming smile, "just an orange juice thanks" she stuck down a five dollar bill before taking a seat at the booth next to window. She looked on in amusement as the woman scurried around the place dropping things here and there and cursing under her breath before eventually making her way over to Paige, orange juice in hand "thanks…" she hesitated before squinting at the woman's name tag "Talia" she was met by older woman's warm smile.

Gulping half down in one quick motion she was interrupted by a loud infectious laugh coming from just on the other side of the sidewalk. There stood a girl, about 5ft7 with long brown hair ignited by a touch of gold, piercing blue eyes and sporting a tight fitted Cardinal sports uniform. She was tanned although not as tanned as Emily, Paige cursed herself when she pictured her ex briefly before continuing to stare at the girl on the phone across the street. She barely overheard what the girl was saying, but her accent suggested she was not from around here, Paige felt her cheeks burn as the girl turned and the two locked eyes, looking down to avoid looking like a creep she risked another glance only to be met by the girls contagious smile as she made her way towards the cafe. Her heart beating 100mph Paige slumped into the seat as the familiar ring of the bell sounded indicating the girl was now coming towards her. ' _Keep it cool McCullers'_ repeated in her head as she tried to act nonchalant but it was no use she felt her self turn into a hot mess as soon as she looked up noticing the girl smiling stood opposite her.


	2. Chapter 2

**Soo... I got a little excited therefore heres Chapter 2! A few things i want everyone to know I DO NOT OWN PRETTY LITTLE LIARS OR ANY CHARACTERS THIS IS STRICTLY FANFICTION (that got a little intense) on a lighter note please know that i do not hate on any characters especially the actors who play them. Shipping should be a friendly environment where people can express themselves but we shouldn't get too upset about the whole thing ( i have to remind myself of this everyday) don't hate the writers they are there to create drama and although some ships like Paily feel like we've been cheated just remember... theres always fan fiction! To add the characters in this Sara to me is very shifty in PLL and i am telling that through this story. Also The girls that Paige has met in this chapter is dedicated to Jess-Beanie-mae. I hope you'd approve of this story is girl lots of love and sleep tight xox**

 **Another massive sidetone i am from England therefore i may slip up with some of the American Vocab i am trying my very best to not call a 'couch' a 'sofa' or the 'sidewalk' the 'pavement' so please just humour me :)**

 **thanks so much for reading and reviewing... Jessi1288 you are my soul sister!**

 **RB**

Paige.

"Hi" a soft British accent welcomed the swimmers ears as she finally made eye contact with the stranger "i'm Jess" the girl stood, grinning hand outstretched, Paige had trouble containing her slacked jaw as she gave the girl a cautious once over. Jess was nothing short of beautiful, she had a slightly leaner muscular body then Paige on account of be slightly taller. Firm tanned legs leaked from the small shorts, her biceps clearly visible under the long sleeve Stanford baseball tee. Finally coming to her senses and realising she probably looked a fool, Paige stood almost tipping the orange juice next to her in order to respond to the gesture "Paige Mc..Cullers, Paige McCullers" she spluttered out drawing a giggle from the other girl.

The swimmer could feel her cheeks burning as the girl politely asked if she could join her before the both took their seats. "I hope you don't mind, its just i have only just transferred from London and i noticed you wearing the warm ups." The girl had social skills that Paige deeply admired, she herself struggled not to be an awkward mess every time she met a stranger not to mention a beautiful girl, but there was something about this girl that gave Paige a sense of confidence she couldn't put her finger on it but getting to know the girl would probably make it clearer. "Not a problem" Paige gave the girl a half smile before continuing "So, i am going to take a random guess softball?" Jess looked down at her Tee before answering "No, no i don't even know the rules really..we don't have that back home, i just saw the t-shirt and liked it" she met Paige's gaze again showing off her signature dimples " I play football..sorry, soccer still getting used to that" the two shared a laugh and the 'McCullers head dip' made it's appearance. "I really didn't think you had the burly football body type" Paige quipped back causing the other girl to raise a eyebrow, ' _Smooth_ _McCullers now she knows you've been checking her out'_ "Well since you failed to figure what sport i play how about i guess what you do. Whoever loses buys the coffee?" Paige looked surprised, she wasn't sure if the girl was flirting with her or was just really keen to make a friend. Whatever it was she wasn't used to being on the receiving end, with Emily it was constantly Paige texting first, Paige calling Emily to arrange impromptu dates and striking conversations. Jess seemed like a breath of fresh air and for a minute Paige's attention wasn't on her Ex but on the girl sat in front of her. With her gorgeous trademark grin Paige lent forward to shake the girls hand signally the bet was on before sitting back down in her seat crossing her arms and putting on her best poker face. "Well.. from looking at your body type and lack of bruises I'm going to rule out any contact sport.." the girl checked Paige's face for any signs of agreement before winking and carrying on her assumptions "Your arms are pretty toned and i'm certain that if i looked under the table your legs would also be" she lent forward summoning an inaudible gulp from Paige before looking in her eyes and whispering "swim team." Paige bit back a smile as she pulled out a a twenty from her pocket placing in down on the table and sliding it over to the grinning soccer star.

Emily.

"Shit!" That was the second time Emily dropped her key trying to juggle the enormous amount of Chinese food and open the door whilst holding her favourite movie 'Rudy' between her teeth. On the third attempt she made her way inside kicking the door shut as she went her way through the hall to find Sara , oblivious hunched over her laptop wearing an oversized pair of headphones. Sensing an opportunity Emily quietly set down the takeout before silently making her way towards her unsuspecting girlfriend, reaching out to clasp her hands in front of the startled girls eyes. The humour however was short lived as Sara jumped from the couch smashing her laptop on the ground in the process whilst ripping her headphones from her ears and turning to a shocked Emily. "What the fuck are you doing!" the girl yelled at the top of her voice causing Emily's body to tighten. "I…I'm sorry i didn't realise…." She was cut off by the short tempered blonde whose clenched fists became even more evident to Emily "You didn't realise what, that i'm fucking jumpy and still pretty fucked up from being kidnapped, no your right, you didn't because you have no clue Emily about anything" Emily opened her mouth but her voice cracked almost instantly, a small tear promptly falling from her perfect brown eyes. She knew Sara was seriously damaged from the incident but that was 2 years ago they were both in a relationship and Emily fought hard to help Sara regain her trust in people and move on. But they hadn't moved on, tonight served as another cruel reminder that they may never be able to move forward from that stage of their lives. Emily stood perfectly still, silent as she clasped her eyes together tightly trying to avoid the wave of tears gathering within her only for attention to be bought back to reality as Sara pushed past knocking her sideways as she ran up the stairs. Without hesitation Emily proceeded to follow her only to be halted by the deafening slam of the bedroom door. Lowering her foot from the first step opting instead to just sit Emily went over the events that just occurred in her head, any tears that were restrained earlier had now certainly made an appearance as she sat there silently sobbing clutching her knees to her chest.

Awoken by a key unlatching the lock Emily shot up from her slumber. Her neck ached from the position she was laying on the couch as she squinted over the the clock * _1:31am*_ before she could gather her thoughts Pam was making her way into the living room promptly switching on the lights to witness a tear stained Emily hunched over the couch, a smashed laptop at her feet. "Honey, what happened, Who did this? Wheres Sa…" she was cut off by Emily "Mom its fine, i fell asleep the laptop must have fallen off the arm chair. Its no big deal i'll get a new one" Pam looked into her daughters eyes, she knew that Emily was lying but the look on the young girls face proved that she was not up to being scrutinised, instead Pam just wondered over to Emily kissed her forehead and wiped the running mascara from her face, no words were needed, not now as Emily clung to her mothers side. The hug was interrupted by her mothers soft voice "You better get some sleep..you find out your work placement tomorrow and you need to be looking sharp". Emily smiled as Pam tucked her stray hair behind her ear. Emily cleared her throat before swiftly answering "I'll be up soon I'm just going to sit down here for a while." Pam didn't search for a reason as to why Emily wasn't sleeping in her room, the girls soft brown eyes spoke a thousand words that only a mother could read "goodnight honey."

* _bleep*_

Emily's stirred her eyes flickered open before shutting quickly once again.

 _*bleep*_

 _*bleep,bleep*_

Squinting at the overbearing sunlight the pierced through the curtains Emily reached for her overly active cell phone only to be sat bolt upright upon realising the time. "Shit" she muttered under her breath. _8 missed_ calls:Hanna. The calls were followed by a stream of gradually increasing abusive text messages from her best friend scolding her for bailing on the 'Work placement' seminar.

Within minutes she was running out the door clutching her folder, her hair still wet from the quickest shower of her life. She made it to the College in record time, however the success was short lived glancing across the parking lot her eyes met with a less than impressed Hanna, who stopped arms crossed slowly shaking her head. With a sigh and quick look in the rearview mirror Emily made her way towards her best friend. "Im sorry Han…" She was interrupted by Hanna's finger stopping her from making an feeble excuses. "Nope, I'm not listening" The blonde clearly stated whilst glaring down at Emily's choice of outfit, only to look up and add "You owe me lunch also as your best pal i get to be honest with you, you my friend look like shit" Hanna smirked at Emily's mock offence as she linked arms their arms. "Let me guess Tarzan was let out her cage and kicked off again" Emily's eyes widened at the comment. Although not subtle Hanna could always figure out what was wrong with Emily and today was no exception, Emily quickly pulled away from Hanna's arm and hurriedly made her way down the hall. Out of breath Hanna finally caught up to the girl who was clearly agitated by Hanna's choice of words "Come on Em talk to me, i hate seeing you like this i just want you to be happy again like you were with Pai.." "STOP!" Hanna jumped as Emily slammed her hand into the locker before the blonde could finish her sentence. " Why can't you realise that i am happy with Sara instead of reliving the past. Paige.." Emily looked down as she gulped inwardly shaking her head "Paige is gone Hanna, she left me i can't just put my life on hold waiting for her to come back to me." Hanna smirked at the comment, stepping forward before quietly answering "Like she waited for _you_ all that time, the shit _you_ pulled with Nate.. with Alison _she_ waited Emily _she_ never once ran and if I'm honest with you i don't blame her for leaving because really _you_ left her a long time ago." Watching Hanna turn the opposite direction Emily slumped into her locker clenching her teeth tightly together as she remembered the look in Paige's eyes every time she had let her down, only to be brought back to reality by Hanna's distant infuriated voice "Oh, and i got my apprenticeship and Vogue thanks for asking, have fun in California, Em!" Emily's eyes instantly shot open hearing the remark, turning to open her locker as her acceptance letter fell to the floor. Her eyes scrolled down the page until she reached the part that made her eyes water and mouth run dry.

 _Accepted for 6 week work placement at the Sports psychology department, Stanford University…_

Paige.

It was the day of the meet, one of the most important of the year up against the Cardinals fierce competition from Baylor, Texas. For once Paige slept remarkably well. She received the usual wake up call from her dad and words of encouragement from her mother as they both made the way out of the house and promised to be in the bleachers later that day. The usual routine still applied even though it was race day, but more than ever Paige was feeling enthusiastic, a smile tugged onto her lips as she laced up her running shoes. She felt her mind wonder off to the girl who had been occupying her thoughts the previous day. After the bet was lost Paige bought the girl coffee and they chatted for what seemed like forever, about anything and every thing, about the girls family back home in England and Paige's gruelling practice routine. She was quick to notice the other girl shared Paige's passion for their respective sports, she too was pushed hard but was a force to be reckoned with. She had iron hard determination just like the swimmer and Paige grew to love how the girls face lit up every time she reminisced about a certain game or a goal she or a teammate was refreshing. Before she reached the front door her phone bleeped.

 _Hey, its Jess, English Jess, Coffee Jess. Anyway just wanted to wish you luck out there today, you got this in the bag :) Hope to catch the meet after my training ends. Good luck x_

Paige smiled inside instantly at the memory of yesterday morning,overwhelmed with self pride that she eventually asked for the girls number before she had to shoot off for and running her thumb over the message she paused to send a quick reply.

 _Hi, Jess, English Jess, Coffee Jess ;) thnks for the text just heading out for my run, may head to the jumping bean, was hoping i could win that coffee back :)-Paige x_

Paige swallowed hard knowing that the text she sent could have suggested the start of something. She shook her head cursing herself for overthinking but more importantly for feeling guilt. Reminding herself of the conversation she had with her dad the previous day she began to pocket the phone before she heard the bleep again.

 _I think i owe you one anyway. ill explain when i see you, 1 hour outside the jumping bean.. can't wait x_

Slightly confused at the comment Paige brushed off any worry knowing the girl probably had a good reason to owe her a coffee, she smiled down at the phone and made her way over to that quiet little coffee shop where she knew she was to become a regular customer.


	3. Chapter 3

**I DO NOT IN ANY WAY OWN PRETTY LITTLE LIARS OR THE MAJORITY OF THE CHARACTERS IN THIS STORY, STRICTLY FANFICTION.**

 **So here is the third chapter. It was a hard one to write. Its the kind of build up chapter that leads to Bigger story lines. Im half way through the next chapter and chapter 5 should be up by the end of the week. Im really going to be relying on your reviews as to how long this story is going to be/ how it ends (ill also be judging how i want the ending to go by watching PLL and how Emily is acting) so keep those reviews and PM's coming i love hearing from you guys! Tell me what you guys think of Jess and if you want more from her. She really is a sweetheart in this story. I know it may seem I am writing more Paige scenes. I am just waiting for Emily to get to stanford to write more about her. Happy reading**

 **RB**

Pacing back and forth from her locker, Emily resembled nothing more than a ghost both in image and glanced up at her reflection in the classroom window opposite, her eyes lacked focus, her skin was uncharacteristically pale as she tried to reign in her open mouth. A stream of short shuddering breaths escaped her lips as she let her eyes wonder to the picture of the Rosewood Sharks she hung proudly in her locker. They had just beaten the Red devils and Coach Fulton was holding up the trophy. Paige and Emily stood off to the side smiling proudly. Happy, arm in arm. She turned her back, slamming the locker shut and ran as fast as she could.

As she sat silently gripping the wheel for what seemed like an age , she tried to collect her thoughts but it was no use. She could not even remember driving home, all she knew was that she was there and her eyes were focused on her front porch. Her mind drifted back to previous moments she shared with Paige, replaying it in her head like a broken record.

 _"_ _I practiced what I'm going to say to you, did you know that? i talked to myself the whole way over here.. i'm pretty convincing. Then i get to this porch and i forget everything. All i can say is 'I love you'. Like if i just say it right it'll fix things..somehow you'll hear it differently this time and.. everything will be alright"_

Emily winced at the memory, the look on Paige's face made her eyes slam shut . The girl had a pretty good idea of what pure pain looked like in persons eyes. She watched her friends in constant fear, they had been drugged, abused, kidnapped and tortured. Their families put through hell and back . But none of which compared to the look on Paige's face that night, the girl was terrified, more so than when she was held and gagged at knife point.. it was all because of Emily. The thought of not having Emily in her life crushed her right down to the soul. No one else made Paige as vulnerable as the girl who supposedly loved her, not Alison. Not A, nobody.

A few deep breaths and sharp wrath of the front door closing brought Emily back to reality. She glanced over to Sara holding a duffel bag shifting nervously on the spot. As Emily approached her, hands shoved in her pockets she mentally prepared herself for what was to become the inevitable. "My Mom called.." Sara broke the silence and obvious tension in the air. "She's got a new job, a new place" The girl stood awkwardly trying to avoid searching Emily's glassy stare before continuing "It's..It's in Michigan" Emily bit forcefully on her lip as the comment ripped through her like a blunt knife, she stared at the ground trying to prevent the downpour of tears building up. Shaking her head from side to side, Emily tried to rack her brains for anything that would make the girl stay. But no words would come to her. Dropping her bag Sara reached forward taking the girls hand and rubbing her thumb repeatedly over Emily's wrist. "I'm broken..Em.." tears from both girls fell simultaneously to the floor "and for what it's worth i know you are too." Sara's attention wondered as a cab slowly approached, pressing her lips firmly to Emily's forehead before leaning down to gather her things.

Paige

Paige leant against the building just out of sight of the coffee pace getting over there a little faster than she would usually run, caused beads of sweat to fall from her collar bone all the way to her prominent chilled brick wall worked wonders against the swimmers body as she tried to compose herself before meeting the girl who made her nervous and excited at the same time. Peeking around the side of the building cautiously, a grin filled the girls cheeks as she spotted Jess eagerly waiting outside drumming her fingers impatiently on her phone.

As Paige wondered over the girls eyes finally met. An identical smile invaded their faces as they both opened their mouths to speak at the same time, Paige pausing briefly to let the girl go first.

"I thought you weren't going to show" The Soccer star beamed a slight blush forming in her cheeks.

"Now why would i do a thing like that" Paige quipped back "Apparently i'm getting a _free coffee_ today?" The swimmer smiled confused at the other girls sudden nervousness.

"Yeeeh..about that" the girl looked up to meet Paige's deep brown eyes and swallowed internally "I um..cheated a little. That bet..i saw a picture of you in the trophy cabinet at College. Thats how i knew you were on the swim team" Jess closed her eyes embarrassed from confessing the little white lie she told only to strike up a conversation with Paige.

She was relieved when a small chuckle left the swimmers mouth. Jess punched the girl playfully before shooting back "stop laughing, it worked didn't it?!" Paige moved forwards making the slightly taller girls breath hitch before whispering "and heres me thinking you thought i had sexy swimmer legs" Jess raised her brow, biting her lip seductively and without hesitation replied "well, i didn't say it was all lies."

Jess returned to the table, coffee in hand clasping a bag of two identical cupcakes between her teeth as the two settled at the same booth that they became accustomed to the previous day.

"Im not sure what you'd like so i just got coconut frosting" Paige looked up at into the girls glistening blue eyes before dipping her head with a smile.

Jess was nailing it. Whatever this was whether it was flirting or just friendly conversation, Paige couldn't help but feel captivated by the girl. Not only did she do the small things like guess her favourite cupcake, she never once broke eye contact with the swimmer, she genuinely looked as if being in Paige's company was the best part of her day, like theres no where else in the world she'd rather be. Paige never felt like that before. She felt as if every girl she met fell so short of Emily's standard, comparing her ex to anyone who tried to get close. There was something about Jess that intrigued Paige. She wasn't the type of girl that would need chasing or pushed people away. The swimmer was sure, like anyone, the girl had faults but as of this moment Jess had 1 up on Emily. She made Paige feel wanted. The girl wasn't Emily.

 _1 hour later_

Pausing briefly from the fits of giggles Paige turned her attention to the buzz on her phone. The swimmer frowned knowing that the gathering had to come to an end, she had to start making her way up to the college to start warm ups for the meet. Although they had been sat there for a little over an hour talking non stop, laughing and mocking each other, Paige felt overwhelmed with sadness realising that she now had to leave.

"Im sorry, i have to go" Paige regretfully sounded to the girl grabbing her bag and turning towards the exit.

"It was really nice seeing you again Jess"

Jess could sense the reluctancy in the Swimmers voice as she subconsciously took the girls arm making Paige swivel round to face her once again. With a nervous smile she loosened the grip before reaching behind to scratch the back of her neck, summoning up the question she wanted to ask the brown eyed beauty all morning.

"You know i read online last night that swimmers had to eat up to 8,000 calories a day, is that true?"

Paige slowly nodded, with a puzzled look on her face. It was a random question but she let the girl continue.

The stunning brunette paused, gathering her thoughts before persevering.

"So i was just wondering… would you let me load you up with carbs at dinner…after the meet?"

Speechless Paige looked over Jess's shoulder only to witness Talia grinning wildly at her from behind the counter nodding her head suggestively urging the girl to accept the offer. She returned to look at Jess opening her mouth before another reminder sounded on her phone.

Paige stuttered before answering the girl "I..i have to go, i'll text you later." Jess's face turned bright red as she watched Paige rush past her effectively crashing her way out of the door, before heading into a sprint across the street.

As Paige rounded the corner to the exact building she was propped up against earlier that morning, she clung tightly to her chest, trying her best to regulate her breathing before sinking to a crouched position holding her face in her hands. Flashbacks of Emily repeated in her head over and over, she could hardly breath, almost bordering on a panic attack. She searched deep within herself to try to figure out why she was in such an emotional state. The only feeling she could pinpoint was that she felt like she was cheating on Emily. Emily Fields, the girl who put Paige last time and time again, the girl who stood on her porch and told her 'she deserved the best of everything' which in honest truth was just a nice way of explaining that she couldn't give the girl what she needed. The girl who instead of driving Paige to the airport spending the last few precious moments they had, together, opted instead to investigate with Aria. Emily was the only person that was holding Paige back and she didn't even know it.

As she sat there staring into the distance her phone signalled a text message. Her palms sweated at the thought of it being from Jess, relief washed over her as she caught sight of the sender. It was from her teammate, Rio, telling her to get her _'skinny white ass'_ to training before Coach Matthews noticed her absence. She immediately stood, dusting her self off before reaching to her pocket for her iPod, panicking when she realised it was missing, panicking even more at the place she knew she had left it.

With her tail between her legs she walked cautiously back over to the 'Jumping Bean Cafe.' Head down, gaze fixed to the floor she pushed through the door wincing at the bell signal. Jess however was nowhere to be found. Instead Talia just looked up from her accounts book and gave Paige a small apologetic smile.

"I think i left my." Paige was cut off by Talia reaching behind the girl to pick up the iPod from behind the cashier.

"She didn't know if wanted to see her again so she asked me to keep it here for you" The coffee shop owner muttered sheepishly.

"You saw all that, Huh?" the young girl whispered avoiding the woman's sympathetic stare.

Talia simply nodded.

"Well thanks i got to go" Paige began to retreat backwards but she was suddenly surprised when Talia lunged forward and wrapped her in a one armed hug. Releasing from the embrace, she gestured for Paige to take a seat finally breaking the awkwardness with her soft voice.

"You know i dated a girl very similar to yourself" She smiled at the memory before carrying on "I had just moved to small town, started a job in a little coffee shop. My husband and I… he didn't know about my sexuality at the time" Paige shifted awkwardly in her see but still said no word. "There was this girl, i could sense every time i was around her this wave of anger, she was hurting. She made the tension in the room unbearable. She walked in everyday wearing the same shirt, flipping out if something ever spilt on it. I could tell she was still holding on to her Ex. Day's passed and i could tell we both had a connection. She seemed better as time went on. I remember asking her one day how she is mean't to move on when she still carried the girls shirt on her back. Ever since that day something changed within her. She let go, it was pretty soon after her breakup but i knew she was ready to move on. We began dating and things were great" The story came to a halt before Paige interrupted

"Then what happened"

Talias eyes left the hands clasped within her lap before uttering the remainder of the words "She..um.. she found out about my husband, that i wasn't being entirely honest. I quit the job and moved here, started my own business, left my husband" Any pain that was in the woman's eyes was now gone as she looked up to smile at Paige. "All i am trying to say is that you have to open your heart to love again. The world may seem still at times but it is always in motion, moving on to bigger and better things" she leant over to give Paige's hand a gentle squeeze before clearing her throat standing abruptly "look on the bright side without a little heartbreak i wouldn't have this little gem of a business.. I wouldn't change anything what happened" She paused looking up at the neon sign infront of her. Unbeknownst to Paige the next sentence could possibly send her whole world crashing down

"Although out of everything i wish i could have taken the name of the shop with me . 'The jumping bean' doesn't have the same ring to it as much as the 'Rear window Brew'."

Talia walked passed Paige briefly brushing shoulders failing to notice the look of complete shock on the Swimmers face. Paige breathed heavily taking in the information. Her heart felt like it had sunk to bottom of the ocean. Paige was the Ex in Talia's story. She thought again back to Emily. As soon as Paige got on that plane she was a complete unconsolable mess. She shut herself off from the rest of the world, the thought of Emily contacting her.. making Emily suffer a long distance relationship made Paige's skin crawl. She smashed her phone changed her email and didn't speak to her parents for weeks.

The sharp ring of the bell brings Paige's thoughts crushing back to the present, turning to stare at the older woman as she served the customer. She was pissed but strangely enough it felt as if something in Paige's heart shifted. She wondered for a moment how she was not throwing punches at Talia or standing in a pool or her own tears. The girl was confused ,after gaining the knowledge of how quickly Emily had moved on after the she left, of how when Paige felt like her whole world was coming down the other girl was finding comfort in the arms of another woman, she thought that she would return to being how she was on the plane that night. But she didn't. The sinking feeling vanished, Instead she just stood there, her head shaking side to side as she let out a small chuckle.

" _I did not mean a damn thing to that girl"_ played over and over in Paige's head as she glanced beside her to the booth herself and Jess were previously occupying silently cursing herself for not giving the girl a chance. Maybe she had time to make it right, all she knew is that she needed to be near the blue eyed girl who numbed the ache in her heart.

Looking at the booth one last time she turned to make her way out the door, she was running late for practice but she could leave without confirming things with Talia.

"Thanks for the talk, i really hope you find someone just like.." she paused waiting for Talia to fill in the blanks. Her body tightening as Talia finally replied…

"Emily."


	4. Chapter 4

**I DO NOT OWN PRETTY LITTLE LIARS OR THE CHARACTERS**

 **Guess who? Chapter four is up. i apologise in advance for any mistakes it is 3am where i am and i am past the point of exhaustion (had to finish this chapter for you guys!) this is a total Paige scene next up Emily. Please review and tell me what you think good or bad. It means so much that you're enjoying what i am writing. Also introducing a new character.. tell me what you think!**

 **Thank you and LOVE as always**

 **RB**

Paige

Squinting at the clock from behind the locker room window, Paige could only pray she would be able to sneak through the door unnoticed. She gulped hearing the inaudible laughing coming from inside. Finally mustering up the courage,mentally preparing herself for the roasting she was bound to receive from Coach Matthews, she reached for the door knob but was stopped in her tracks. A small yelp escaped her lips as the door flung open, a strong hand pulled her inside and dragged her to the back of the room.

"Dude!" A slender darker skinned girl whispered harshly. "Where the hell have you been? I've been covering your ass all morning. I had to tell Coach 'mother nature' called and you had to run to the drug store!"

Paige jaw dropped at the revelation.

"Let me get this straight.." pausing briefly as the swimmers teammate tried to cover up a chuckle hearing the innuendo, causing a sideways glare from Paige.

"Remember all those times i covered for you while you were either too hungover or too busy engaging in non PG activities with Gus?" The other girl nodded although not quite understanding why Paige sounded so pissed.

"The one and _only_ time i'm late,the excuse you opt for was to tell our middle aged male coach i had to bail for tampon related emergencies"

The girl let out a hearty laugh before realising Paige's face remained less than amused. She cleared her throat, trying to regain her composure.

"Look i never said i was any good at lying for other people!" she replied trying to disguise the mischievous grin with a pout that was clearly asking for forgiveness.

Paige tried her hardest to remain stern, but it was of no use, the bitten back smile had finally taken over her lips, coming to the conclusion that the girl opposite her could get away with murder with the flutter of her eyelashes.

She was 5ft10, had deep green eyes that were extremely rare giving the girls ethnicity. Rio had all the makings of a top model. She actually reminded the swimmer a lot of Hanna. She liked to party, loved the constant attention from the boys but remained fiercely loyal to her friends.

A year older than Paige, she was the first to befriend her as the other girls put her through gruelling exercises trying to suss out whether the girl was capable of anchoring. Paige was openly out at College. Other than a few looks from some of the typical shit head jocks, Paige never received a negative reaction regarding her sexuality, especially from her teammates. The girls all continued to change in communal areas without a second thought and they even went as far as trying to set her up with every girl they saw wearing flannel or biker boots that day. The thing for Paige that separated Rio from the others though was not once did she come up to girl, giving her the whole " _you're so brave" or "how did your parents react? have you always known?"_ speech.

In fact Rio's reaction to the swimmers revelation was so surprisingly blasé it left Paige second guessing as to wether the girl actually heard her correctly. She had just shrugged linked arms with her and told her she was buying her Fro-Yo.

The girl clapped her hands with excitement as Paige finally gave in wrapping her in a one armed hug. She could never be too mad at her best friend.

"So you still haven't told me what happened this morning" The girl questioned as Paige turned to place her duffle bag on the bench.

"Wouldn't you like to know" the girl quipped back knowing her teammate would bound figure out what she was doing that morning. She had a sixth sense for those things.

As Paige predicted the other girls puzzled eyes slowly grew wider upon realisation as an open mouth grin took over her face.

"You dirty dog! Well it looks like i wasn't the only one getting wet this morning, slightly disappointed that my part was down to training for this rather important meet and yours was getting a long awaited fu.."

The girl was brought to silence as Paige's hand covered her loud mouth. Only to quickly release it as she felt the girls tongue lick her palm.

"Ergh, you're so gross!" Paige quickly retracted her hand before wiping it over her jeans.

"Please, when have you been so opposed to a little tongue action" The girl waggled her eyebrows suggestively.

"You're disgusting ,do you know that?… Besides it was just coffee." The girl shrugged acting like it was no big deal, continuing to change into her swim suit.

"We both know that this is a very big deal doofus! You haven't even entertained the idea of dating since leaving 'Bitch Pocahontas'"

Paige winced at the nickname the girl used every time two discussed her past relationship with Emily, she gave Rio the same look she always did, telling her that she had gone too far. Her thoughts briefly thinking back to the talk with Talia.

"Wait, is that the girl who came looking for you in here earlier?"

Paige heart started to beat faster hearing the girls question. She looked for words but only managed to stammer trying to figure out why the girl was looking for her.

Rio smiled at Paige's obvious discomfort. She snapped on her swim goggles and began to walk towards the pool stopping to nod towards Paige's locker.

"I think a certain young lady may have slipped you a little love note" she rounded the corner leaving Paige sat on the bench, eyes focused on the locker behind her.

She waited for Rio to walk out of sight before jumping up and rushing over to her locker, cursing as she hit her shin against the bench on her way. She fumbled nervously with the combination before swinging the door open, a receipt from the coffee shop fell slowly to her feet. Taking a deep inhale she ben't down to pick it up.

 _I'm sorry about earlier, didn't mean to freak you out. I hope we can still be friends, I'll take whatever i can get.. Good luck out there, Go get em' Cowgirl. J x_

 _Earlier that day:_

 _"_ _English breakfast tea?" Paige asked gently teasing the girl sat opposite her._

 _"_ _What? I can't deal with all the fruity weird arse tea you guys have over here, why do you have to add sugar to EVERYTHING?" The blue eyed beauty quipped back, slurping at the hot beverage._

 _"_ _You know you're probably the only person who orders that right?" The swimmer replied through a gentle laugh._

 _"_ _Well what can i say, my mother always said i was one of a kind" She winked, earning a girly blush from Paige._

 _"_ _Im just surprised you didn't ask for a fine china cup, hardly fit for tea with the Queen" She put on her best British accent._

 _Jess choked back a chuckle hearing the girls poor attempt at impersonating her._

 _"_ _Ok one, i hope you know you just referred yourself as 'the Queen'. She giggled again watching as Paige dramatically flicked her hair comically suggesting she was of regal importance._

 _"_ _And two don't get me started on the typical American stereotype, i wouldn't want to offend that pretty little face of yours" The soccer star sat back grinning in her seat._

 _"_ _What you think we all sit on rocking chairs,drinking Bud Light, shooting cans off our porches?"_

 _"_ _Yes, something like that, just a bunch of overly patriotic, burger munching, Cowboys" The girl quickly replied taking a bite out of her cupcake._

 _"_ _Woah, woah, woah" Paige cut the girl off,raising her finger in the air before continuing._

 _"_ _All my life I've wanted to be a Cowgirl, don't trash my dreams, Jessie!"_

 _Jess's face suddenly lit up._

 _"_ _Jessie huh? When did we move on to the nickname stage"_

 _"_ _I thought it needed an American upgrade, just trying be a good friend, help you blend in"_

 _Jess crossed her arms shaking her head at the girls cocky demeanour, a smile still plastered to her face._

 _"_ _Right well that settles it, from now on, you will be named Cowgirl"_

 _"_ _What, no! You cant let everyone know my childhood fantasy!" Paige quickly protested_

 _"_ _Well its too late" the girl shot back. "I can't even remember your real name now. What was it.. Pipper, Pete?"_

 _Paige laughed deeply. Throwing a balled up napkin at the girl in fits of giggles opposite. Jess's whitt was rather impressive not to mention pretty hot. Paige couldn't remember a time she had smiled so much that it made her cheeks ache._

 _"_ _I thought you disapproved of us rowdy cowboy types?"_

 _Jess's laughter quickly turned to a half smile as she looked down to focus her eyes on the cup in front of her, fiddling nervously with the the receipt in her hands._

 _"_ _I do" Her tone turned more serious as her eyes shifted from her hands and back to Paige's deep chestnut eyes._

 _"_ _I guess it just depends on whose wearing the boots.."_

Butterflies invaded the swimmers stomach as she ran her finger over the girls handwriting. Even after running out on the girl she still wanted to make sure Paige knew that she was there for her. In that moment nothing was in the girls thoughts but Jess. Her perfect flowing hair that gently caressed the sides of her cheekbones. The way she spoke softly, but never lacked passion.. and those eyes. Paige often found herself getting lost in the deep blue pools that had a never ending depth.

Smiling to herself as she clutched the note to her chest she was immediately pulled from her thoughts as Coach Matthews military tone shot through the air like a canon.

"Cardinals all in!"

Startled Paige turned her attention to the group of girls huddling in the middle of the room, smiling one last time at the sight of the crinkled receipt before shutting it in her locker.

"Im not going to repeat how important today means to this team. Those Baylor girls out there are tough, however in my 7 years coaching i have never been so proud of the group of young ladies that stand in front of me at this very moment. You've worked so hard for this.."

He momentarily glanced to Paige, the telling look letting the girl know that he was proud of the impressive work she had put in the last few months.

"And now its all about to pay off." All the girls placed their hands in the circle. They all simultaneously began to draw a low build up.

"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh ,3,2,1 CARDINALS!"

A series of cheers and banging of lockers filled the room as they all began to dispense, heading towards the distant sound of supporters cheering in the bleachers.

"Paige can i see you for one moment" The Coach signalled towards her before looking over his shoulder checking they were far away from listening ears.

"You are my star swimmer Paige, i need you on top form if were going to be able to win nationals this year"

Shifting nervously in his stance he reached to his back pocket, picking out a stack of folded papers before clearing the frog in his throat

"I took the liberty of picking some pamphlets on.. you know lady stuff and how to deal with…er…well….lady stuff whilst competing"

Paige's face turned beet red as she slowly took the paper from the coaches hand, cringing internally as she heard a familiar muffled giggle coming from no one else but her best friend.

"Thanks Coach, i think thats all the information i could ever need" Turning to scowl at Rio standing at her locker pretending to fix her swim cap.

He sighed deeply "Thank god thats over" placing a hand on her shoulder and giving it a gentle squeeze "You got this, Kid"

"Thanks Coach." As he walked away Paige made her way over to the girl doubled over in fits of laughter. She lightly punched Rio's arm.

"Do you see what you did! I wanted to crawl under a rock and die" She cringed yet again looking down at the pamphlets before tossing them in the trash.

"Hey, that took a lot of effort on his part finding them for you" The girl replied wiping away the tears of laughter the scenes before had caused.

Before Paige could react she was cut off by the introductory announcements. They both quickly made their way to the tunnel.

"And Now please welcome your Varsity Cardinals!"

The natatorium exploded with cheers and chants as the girls all walked out, waving to their family and friends in the crowd.

Taking off her warm ups as the Announcer read through the her teammates names, each earning a cheer, she fought hard to contain her nerves.

"And last but by all no means least. Ladies and Gentleman please welcome…your Anchor… Paige McCuller's" The stadium erupted as Paige's name was mentioned. Noticing the cheers were even louder than normal she looked around for the source of screaming.

There stood, frantically waving foam fingers and holding banners reading "Crush Em' CARDINALS" ,was the entire 22 member soccer squad.

There was a sort of rivalry at the college. Teams from other sports rarely attended other sporting events even though they all represented the same colors. It was incredibly moving moment for Paige, seeing such an amazing amount of support the girls were giving her and it didn't take long for her to lock eyes with the girl who undoubtedly made all that possible.

There she stood wearing a tightly fitted Cardinal hoody which she made look more incredible than anyone else ever could. They stared at each other for what seemed like forever. In Paige's head it was just the two of them in the room, no noise, nothing. Just the two of staring deeply into each other eyes. Jess offered a small wave which mean't more to the girl than the hundreds of people cramped into the bleachers screaming her name.

"She's really beautiful Paige" Looking on from behind the girl Rio had noticed who the swimmer was staring so intently at.

Without turning and without breaking eye contact with Jess, Paige simply replied.

"Yeh..she is."

 _2 hours later_

This was it. The part they had all been leading towards. It was a tie. The only thing separating the two teams was the dreaded relay.

"We got this right?" Rio looked nervously to Paige for reassurance.

"Yeh..we do." Paige gave the girl a supportive pat on the back, trying to swallow the sickening nerves filling her stomach.

She had to be strong, well at least appear that way. She was the leader in the team. The girl who was going to either fail or bring back the trophy. She looked to the crowd, Nick was stroking his chin anxiously giving her the _"you know what to do"_ nod, her mother just giving her a huge smile and a thumbs up.

Paige had won all her races previous to this event, she had a lot to be proud of. But she knew this was the make it or break it moment of the year.

As she lined up behind the her one final glance at Jess. There she stood off to the side of the chanting girls. Her hands clasped together covering her mouth, bouncing ever so slightly on her heels.

 ***BANG***

The sound of the pistol bought Paige's attention back to the task in hand. She watched as Rio flew into the water earning an early lead. Her ears were ringing from the noise as the next swimmer took over. She breathed heavily fixing her goggles on top of her head.

The chants continued, her head felt like it was swelling from the unforgiving noise as Cesca, the slowest of the 4 girls took her position. Paige's heart dropped seeing the other girls dive. She had only managed to dive 5ft before hitting water, not far enough to keep up with the competition.

"It's now or never Kid!" Her coach yelled from the opposite side of the pool. Paige took her position. Glancing sideways sizing up the Baylor anchor. She snapped her goggles over her eyes.

The Baylor girl was half way through the dive when Cesca finally managed to reach the wall. The crowd went silent as Paige threw herself off the board. A full 8ft before breaking water. Her best start all season. She sliced through the water, pushing hard as a burn ripped through her muscles. She had a lot to make up for. With every stroke she could see the girl getting closer in her peripheral vision. Her turn was tight. Textbook perfect, reminding everyone in the crowd as to why she was considered the best of the best.

The wall slowly coming to sight, Paige gave it her everything. She could no longer see the girl she was racing but she knew she had to focus. This was her time to be the star.

As her hand touched the wall every thing seemed like it was running in slow motion. She heard nothing. Opening her eyes she looked up towards her timer. Before he could react the Crowd erupted 10 times louder than before. Paige had not only beaten her opponent by a full 2.8 seconds, she had set College record, smashing her personal best.

She shook the other girls hand, looking to her mom in the bleachers waving her arms like a woman possessed. The girls were ecstatic chanting Paige's name as they all reached to pull the swimmer out of the pool. She began to reach for the sea of outstretched arms before hesitating and turning her gaze towards the soccer girls, noticing Jess throwing her fists in the air,cheering as she hugged her teammates. Looking back once again at the confused girls at the edge of the pool she was drawn to Rio. The girl simply smiled and nodded gesturing her head towards the soccer star.

Paige didn't need to be told twice. She pushed back off the wall swimming towards the centre of the pool before cutting under each lane, stopping at the edge right next to Jess. Barely having enough energy to climb the steps let alone pull herself out the pool she leaned over the side as Jess pushed her way through the crowd and made her way towards the swimmer. The crowd went quiet,100 odd puzzled face stared a the two girls in confusion.

"Paige you were incredible" The girl finally spoke up, barely controlling her excitement.

"No Jess, you are.. I don't know how you convinced 2 dozen girls to come down here and support us but you did. Thank you."

Jess simply brushed off the comment.

"Well as captain of the team i kind of get to tell them what to do… obviously nothing to do with the fact i may have promised to buy 22 pots of frozen yoghurt"

Paige smiled hearing the girls revelation. "Wow thats an expensive move"

Jess chuckled before shrugging nervously

"Well its worth it"

A brief silence overcame the two before Paige finally spoke up.

"Earlier…i was an idiot. You're gorgeous…and your funny and smart and to be honest you scare the crap outta me"

Jess's eyebrows dropped in confusion but she didn't dare interrupt.

"You scare me because i haven't felt how i'm feeling right now in such a long time. Jess…I would love nothing more than to take you to dinner"

A gasped filled the natatorium as Jess's jaw dropped to the floor. A side from a few wolf whistles it was completely silent as Jess struggled to find the words to respond to the gesture.

"Say Yes!, Say Yes!, Say Yes!"

Paige looked over to her teammates, Rio was leading the chants, engaging the whole crowd to participate.

Before they knew it they were looking back into each other eyes. The pairs cheeks slightly flustered as the whole stadium, Baylor students included, urged the girl to accept the offer.

Before Paige could say another word Jess crouched down in front over her, not caring that the sloshing water was soaking her knees. She gently caressed Paige's face with both hands before leaning in to leave a gentle longing kiss on the swimmers cheek. She pulled back, still continuing to rub her thumb over the girls wet face before finally answering.

"You're on, Cowgirl"

With that the crowd was ignited yet again, the whole swim team jumped into the pool and swarmed Paige with hugs and high fives…but nothing could tear the girls eyes off Jess.

She was the girl who sat in the stands and watched Paige win.


	5. Chapter 4 B

**AUTHORS NOTE: HEY GUYS! i know, i know super short update but as i said this was a two parter so it is the second part of Chapter 4... So if you look at it that way Super Long! A lot bigger things coming up for Emily once she's out of Rosewood so please bare with that one. There's Drama, Pailyness and mystery all to come!**

 **Sidenote: Have a listen to SNOW PATROL "YOU COULD BE HAPPY" It's one of those songs that i think applies so well to Emily's feelings/regrets in this story. Let me know if you agree!**

 **Please do review it makes all this really worth it hearing what you guys think**

 **Much love as always and next update will be up Saturday!**

 **RB**

 **x**

 **Emily**

Hours had passed since Sara had left. Emily sat in the same position of her porch staring into nothingness, knees clutching her chest sheilding the thudding heartbeat that had yet to slow after the previous events. A bitter coldness had evolved throughout the night but she felt immune to it all. Emily continued to sit motionless only moving to quickly slip through the door unnoticed as her mother pulled into the street.

An awkward tension filled the room as the two sat down to dinner. Pam glanced over curiously to the empty place setting that usually set opposite Emily. Other than the occasional sounds of deep sighing and knives scraping across plates you could hear a pin drop. Pam opened and closed her mouth countless times trying desperately to think of a way to strike up the topic of the missing girl but it was no use. She was just going to have to come out with it.

"Are we going to talk about this or just eat in silence?" Pam finally broke down the social barrier, dropping her fork to her plate with a clatter before fixing her gaze on Emily.

"There is nothing to talk about" The girl replied bluntly ,failing to acknowledge her mother instead opting to continue pushing her food aimlessly around her plate.

"Emily i am not having secrets in this house, now youre going to answer me right now befor.."

"What do you want me to tell you?!" Emily slammed her hands against the table startling her mother.

"My Best friend isn't speaking to me, my Girlfriend of 2 years has just up and left without so much as a ' _see ya'_ and just to add another spice to the shit stew that is my life, I get to spend my summer placement in sunny California with my Ex"

Pam's eyes widened at the reveleation.

"You got a placment at Stanford?..Does Pai..."

"Can i please be excused?" Emily quickly interuppted before Pam could bring Paige up.

Without confirmation Emily pushed away from her chair almost tipping it to the floor. Throwing her napkin on the plate and avoiding the glare coming from her mother she retreated to her bedroom slamming the door in her wake.

Emily rested her head against the inside of the door slowly slipping down to her knees as she choked back a sob. 1001 thoughts were running through the girls head as she looked to the empty bed across the room. She ran her hands violently through her dark hair trying desperately to rid the thoughts in her head from switching to memories of Paige. The pain shot through her like a knife as she thought back to the girl. For a moment she felt like she was having a panic attack. She dug her nails into the skin of her thighs hoping that physical pain would distract the ripping feeling in her heart, but it was no use.

Not only had Emily just lost all that she had known for the past two years but soon she was going to have to face the girl that flipped her world upside down.

*BLEEP, BLEEP, BLEEP*

Emily squinted one eye open trying to search through the darkness for a sign of the alert. She had fallen asleep curled up in the fetal postion on the floor. Crying into a mere state of exhaustion she felt no desire to crawl into bed. Her slumber was interupted by an incoming call. Reaching frantically for her pocket she had hoped it was Hanna finally returning her calls but was suprised to see a Skype call from spencer.

Running her hands through her hair and wiping away any evidence of smeared make-up she quickly accepted the call.

"Hey!" The brunette shrieked at the top of her voice from behind the screen. "Im sorry i hope i didin't wake you!"

"Spencer! Where the hell have you been? you havent called in weeks"

Emily tried to match Spencers enthusiasm whilst simultaneously clearing the evident grogginess in her voice.

The two had not spoke regularly since Spencer had moved to England to start her law degree at Oxford, although they still made sure they set time apart to send emails and even had movie skype dates monthly with Aria in New york.

"I'm sorry, my lectures have been kind of kicking my butt. Soooo, i haven't heard from Hanna. Instead i'll get it straight from the horses mouth.. Where did you get placed this summer?" Spencer asked full of curiosity and excitement.

Emily's head dropped at the comment, she clearly wasn't prepared to sit through the next hours worth of Pep talks but she knew Spencer would figure out something was bothering her, the brunnette had a unique ability to read people like a book, and Emily was no exception to the rule.

"I..Uh i got into the Sports Pschology department for an elite athlete programme " The girl paused briefly to look up at Spencer's grinning face, eagerly waiting to hear more. Emily took a deep breath before finally choking out her next comment.

"It's at Stanford."

Spencer's mouth dropped open as she sat back in her chair shocked. The two sat just staring at eachother for what seemed like forever, neither knowing what to say next.

"Sara is gone" Emily finally piped up drawing Spencer back into the convesation.

"Oh, Em.. look i don't want to say i told you so but..."

"Don't ok" Emily interuppted before they got into the familiar topic of how Spencer thought Sara was trouble.

"I just don't know what to do, you and Aria aren't around anymore, Hanna isn't talking to me"

"Wait why isn't Hanna speaking to you?"

" We got into a fight, she was going on about how i treated Paige before she left and i just snapped" Emily wiped a tear quickly from her face hoping Spencer hand't noticed.

"Spence what am i going to do? What if i see her there? I don't think im ready to face that... i dont think i'll ever be ready" Emily no longer wiped away the tears. She watched her friend look on sympathetically clearly raking her brains for the right thing to say.

"Em, i know this probably won't be what you want to hear.. but maybe seeing Paige isn't such a bad thing"

Emily's brows furrowed in confusion.

"Just hear me out, i know i may not be Sara's biggest fan but i think we can both agree she is a very troubled. Heck you spent most of your relationship fixing her and look where it got you" Spencer shrugged gingerly hoping that she hadn't hurt the girl even more.

"Paige was your way of getting away from everything not a constant reminder of everything that Andrew done to us. That girl would have died just to see you smile Em"

A small smile escaped Emily's tremberling lips as looked over to her wardrobe before fixing her gaze back to the Spencer.

The call was interuppted by numerous voices coming from Spencers end.

"I'm sorry thats my roommate. Look i gotta' go ok but i'll call you tomorrow, don't worry about Hanna i'll talk to her" Spencer assured before the two exchanged goodbyes.

Minutes after ending the call Emily looked once again to the space under her wardrobe. She let out a hitched breath before wondering over dropping to her knees as she reached under to pull out a small wooden box.

Inside were a few items that Emily hadn't seen in years. She pulled out the familiar Rosewood Sharks swim hoody pressing it to her nose as she breathed in the scent. It still smelt of the girl. Her signature Calvin Klein perfume with a hint of chlorine. Continuing to rummage through the momentos Emily was suprised to see her old IPod that she thought was lost. Turning it on she began to flick through the old songs stopping momentarilly to run her thumb over the playlist simply named 'P'.

Releasing a breath she was unaware she was holding she clicked on the first song and slowly lifted the headphones to her ears.

SNOW PARTOL- You could be happy.

You could be happy and i wont know.

but you werent happy the day i watched you go

and all the things that i wished i had not said,

i played in loops until its madness in my head.

Is it too late to remind you... how we were?

But not our last days of silence..screams and blur.

Most of what i remember makes me sure.

i should have stopped you from walking out the door.

Squeezing her eyes shut to avoid the fresh waves of tears Emily ripped her headphones from her ears and threw the IPod to the other side of the room, letting out a series a short sharp breathes as she clutched the hoody tightly to her chest.


	6. Chapter 6

**AUTHORS NOTE: Hello you bunch of gorgeous people! Sorry for the massive delay I've been so busy but glad to finally be up and posting the next chapter. I really hope you enjoy it, Ive been reading so many great Fanfics that you have to check out! "siophiefandom" and "southernstateofmind" amongst my favourites.**

 **The song on this chapter i want you guys to check out is:**

 **WANTED-BOYCE AVENUE COVER**

 **I think it goes great with the chapter and really brings across what Jess is feeling towards Paige.**

 **Also i made a twitter account! follow me if you want for details on updates and to see pictures relating to the story like how i perceived Jess to look that night. Its McCpll or Mcullers7..ill follow you back!**

 **Enjoy! Love**

 **RB**

Paige

*Bleep*

Paige's focus was abruptly drawn to her cell taking her attention away from staring at the abundance of clothes presented in front of her. Picking it up from her bed she smiled as she noticed the sender before swiping her thumb to reveal the message.

 ** _hey :) sorry practice ran a little over schedule, can't wait for tonight, wear something warm..pick you up at 7.. J xo_**

Paige stood for a while rereading the message. She had just assumed that she would be the one to organise the date, even going as far as reserving a table at one of the best restaurants in town.

 ** _Hi yourself ;) Did you have something in mind tonight? I already booked us somewhere. It's really no trouble i can pick you up X -P_**

Before Paige could turn again to focus on what the hell she was supposed to wear tonight she heard her phone bleep once again.

 ** _Cowgirl! You offend me! How dare you think i hadn't planned the mother of all first dates! Cancel plans and no arguments i asked you first remember ;) ..J xo_**

The swimmer smiled at the text particularly focusing on the way Jess ended them the same way every time **_'..J xo' ._** She began quickly dialling to cancel her reservation, which annoyingly had taken her two days of ringing to book.

After what felt like longest 3 hour wait of her life, it was finally time for Paige to step outside her door. She threw a quick wave goodbye to her folks before making her way down her driveway blushing slightly as she caught sight of the beautiful girl leaning slightly, arms crossed on her gleaming black Overfinch Range rover.

"Hello there pretty lady" The Brit finally piped up not hiding the fact she was clearly checking Paige out.

After hours of searching through her wardrobe, even reluctantly involving her mother with the decision she had decided on a pair of tight fitted army green jeans and a simple white collared shirt covered by a grey cashmere sweater that was certainly not hiding her toned stomach.

"You know you're really challenging my masculinity" Paige replied with a wink before continuing "Im usually the gentleman at these kind of things"

Jess chuckled at the remark before walking round to the passenger side to open the door letting Paige step up to the elevated seat.

Paige's eyes darted around the inside of the car. It was in immaculate condition and easily cost about 5 times the amount of her Prius, she looked to the backseat noticing a small rectangular box marked with the single letter 'P' covered with a red ribbon. She quickly focused her gaze back to the front as Jess slipped into the drivers seat.

"Ok, all set" Jess confirmed whilst reaching behind her to clip in her seatbelt.

"Before we go i have to ask… are you a bank robber?" Paige asked, a small smile clinging to her lips.

Jess shook her head embarrassed at the remark knowing that the girl was referring to her flashy car.

"Well Unless it was called the 'Bank of Mom and Dad' no I'm not a bank robber" The two laughed simultaneously before Jess began awkwardly fiddling with the button on her GPS.

Paige couldn't help but stare at Jess. She looked effortlessly incredible. She was wearing a floaty shirt that matched the color of Paige's jeans covered by a black blazer with the sleeves rolled to her elbows, finished off by blue fitted jeans and black heels. Her hair hung in loose curls past her shoulder blades,the front braided and clipped to the side.

It took a little less than an hour to reach their destination but it honestly felt like it flew by. The two chatted and laughed non stop the whole journey.

they had texted each other frequently ever since they met, they knew each others practice times well and scheduled the conversations around them. It was a relief when they were clearly just as comfortable talking in person.

"We're here" Jess grinned shutting off the engine and unbuckling her seat belt. Paige looked around confused at their whereabouts.

"You took me to a dock, are you planning on murdering me" Paige chuckled nervously walking along side Jess who had just finished locking her car.

"Yes you caught me..this is where it ends for you I'm afraid" the girl quipped back whilst jokingly shoving Paige's shoulder.

"Well if this is the last sight i see I'm okay with that" Paige quickly responded her hands gesturing towards the girls athletic body.

Jess's eyes lit up at the comment. The flirting was gradually increasing throughout the night and it made her stomach flip in anticipation every time Paige opened her mouth.

"Wow… that was smooth high five to that!" Jess laughed raising her hand.

Paige smiled as she accepted the the invitation only to be surprised by Jess interlocking their fingers in the air and failed to release her hand even when it dropped to their side. It was the first time since Jess had picked her up that silence filled the air. The two looked to the floor as they continued to walk hand in hand causing Paige's breath to hitch as Jess slowly rubbed the pad of her thumb against her own.

Still looking to the floor Paige stuttered as Jess unexpectedly came to a halt. She turned to question why they had stopped walking but was caught off guard by the twinkling lights in the corner of her eye.

There anchored to the dock was a luxury yacht, not the biggest she had ever seen but nothing short of breathtaking . Painted down the side in royal blue paint read " _Little J_ ". Her breath caught once again when she finally saw what the lights and candles had led to.

On the yacht, lit dimly by fairy lights, was a small intimate table covered by a white cloth, a vase of a dozen red roses and an ice bucket filled with what she could only imagine to be a bottle of fine champagne.

Paige still remained speechless as Jess offered her hand out to guide her onto the boat before pulling out her seat and gesturing Paige to sit. It was a beautiful evening, the sun was setting slowly as waves lapped quietly beside them. Jess returned to the table picnic basket in hand smiling at the girl opposite her who was still opened mouth at the view.

They both sat eating in a peaceful bliss. Jess had made sure to ask Rio earlier that day all of Paige's favourite foods which even included her favourite rosemary chicken.

Noticing all of the familiar foods, a pang of sadness riffeled through Paige's heart as she briefly thought back to the picnic that Emily had made for her back in Rosewood. But it was only for a second. The feeling of butterflies took over as Jess's voice ripped her from the painful thoughts.

"You really look amazing tonight Paige" Jess's dropped to a gentle tone. "I had to promise my Dad we would wear life jackets but i just can't cover that outfit up."

Paige blushed slightly at the revelation dropping her fork to gaze into the soccer stars eyes. She reached over the table to gently graze the tips of the girls fingers.

"Well, i don't know if you've heard but i'm a pretty strong swimmer, you're in safe hands if we go under..i got you. " She leant back in her chair with a cocky grin.

"That is too good of an offer to pass up" and with that Jess flew out of her chair and ran up the steps to the top deck giggling like a small child as Paige chased after her. Reaching the top of the stairs Paige watched on as Jess placed her feet on the bottom railing. Paige admired the girls form from the back before approaching the girl quietly.

"This is looking suspiciously like a scene from Titanic and that didn't end well for them" Paige whispered into the girls ear as she placed both her hands either side of the railing letting Jess drop down and relax her back into Paige's chest.

Paige slowly let her arms drop from the railing to gently wrap them around the girls hips as they stood looking over at the lights that shone miles away.

"I love this song" Jess sighed in content as Paige listened for the speaker trying to recognise the lyrics.

 _Cos' i want to wrap you up_

 _wanna you kiss your lips,_

 _i wanna make you feel wanted._

 _And i wanna call you mine,_

 _wanna hold your hand forever_

 _and never let you forget it._

 _Yeh, i wanna make you feel wanted._

"You look incredibly beautiful Jess."

Paige's grip released as Jess turned to face her. They looked deeply into each others eyes until Jess head dropped with a sigh.

"I haven't had the best relationship experiences Paige" Paige noticed a small glistening tear building in the girls eyes but she didn't feel it was time to interrupt.

"My ex, she kind of…" Jess stopped once again shaking her head as if to pull herself together.

"Hey" Paige caught the girls attention, lifting Jess's chin with her index finger whilst gently stroking below her bottom lip with her thumb.

"Trust me I've been there" She thought back once again to Emily as she swallowed trying to regain her composure.

"Tonight is about you and me..ok"

Jess nodded looking back into Paige's deep brown chestnut eyes.

"Why do i feel like you're about to change my entire life" Jess asked searching within Paige's eyes for an answer.

Paige chuckled inwardly, her thumb now moving from under the girls lip to the side of her cheek before whispering..

"Im going to kiss you now."

Paige leant in cautiously and pressed their lips together. They worked slowly relishing the feeling that grew in their stomachs as Jess slightly opened her mouth to intensify the kiss allowing access for Paige's tongue to run across the bottom of the girls lip.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

*BLEEP*

 ** _You wouldn't believe how much i hate watching you leave, i had an amazing night. I'd love to see you again, goodnight ..J xo_**

Paige grinned from ear to ear at the text. Jess had barely been gone 2 minutes after dropping the girl home and as soon as Paige had turned her phone on there was the message waiting for her.

The smile never left her face as she began to respond.

*BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP*

Paige looked confusingly at the phones constant bleeping. She smacked it lightly against her hand, sure that it had frozen. Her heart suddenly dropped as she noticed the notifications were all from Caleb. A collection of missed calls and frantic messages telling her to "call him back" and "it's urgent."

Paige's pulse began to quicken as she fumbled to find Caleb's number in her contacts.

"Pick up, Pick up" She repeated until the dial tone was finally interrupted by Caleb's voice.

"DUDE!" He expressed in a hushed but sharp tone.

"Ive been calling you all night, look i need to tell you something..its about E"

"Wait"

Paige interrupted not quite catching on what Caleb was trying to say, she was far too excited to wait until he had finished to tell him all about Jess.

"Me first…ive met someone!"

Paige was disappointed when she heard nothing on the end of the phone, no reaction just silence.

"Caleb are you still there?"


	7. Chapter 7

**AUTHORS NOTE: Hey guys! thank you so, so much for these amazing reviews and all the PM's I've been receiving and even bigger thanks for sticking with the story! Im glad you're all enjoying the story as much as i enjoy writing it! You have all responded so well to Jess.. she makes me smile! leave a comment good or bad it makes my day reading them! also if you do choose to comment Let me know… are you team JAIGE or team PAILY?!**

 **This is my longest chapter yet. I sometimes get a little bored of writing the Emily build up but this is the last chapter with her in Rosewood you'll be glad to know ;) Also Caleb and Paige have a really great friendship in my story something i wish they would have pursued on PLL.**

 **The song for this chapter is: BACK TO DECEMBER- TAYLOR SWIFT. Listen and tell me what you think :)**

 **Love as always,**

 **RB**

 **Emily**

"Mom, please go away" Emily mumbled inaudibly into her pillow as Pam knocked on her bedroom door, assuming to try for the hundredth time to get Emily out of bed.

It had been a week since her argument with Hanna and she had not heard from her since. Spencer called a few times trying to act as a mediator in order to get the girls talking again but it was of no use. Hanna was a pretty stubborn character but it had never caused a rift this big between the two. Not before Sara anyway. Yes, they were still best friends but things hadn't been so smooth since Emily and Sara got together, Hanna became more and more distant, they didn't meet up as much and certainly not when Emily's girlfriend was around. In fact all of the girls shared there suspicions about Sara, even going as far as thinking she could be A, but that was all put to rest when Andrew was arrested and charged even after pleading not guilty. At least Spencer and Aria let it go. Hanna still didn't trust the girl, more so when she started working with Caleb.

"Honey, that was your Grandmother on the phone…she just got back from Kentucky and needs picking up from the airport.." There was a long silence as Emily sighed deeply into her pillow, she knew exactly where this was heading.

"Emily.." Pam gasped as she opened the door. Emily's room was trashed, her iPod was smashed to pieces leaving behind a huge dent in the wall, there was tissues and clothes everywhere and Pam swore she could smell a hint of alcohol.

"I'll pick her up, just let me get changed" Emily grunted still reluctant to move from her position.

Looking at her daughter in one of the worst states she had seen her Pam knew they were both in no position to discuss anything at that moment. Instead she stepped over the mess, bit back her trembling lip and shut the door behind her.

 _"_ _Hi, you have reached the voicemail of Hanna Marin, please leave a message."_

"For fucksake!" Emily slammed her phone onto the dashboard of her car and raked her fingers through her hair.

She felt lost without her best friend and this was a time when she really needed her. Sara had practically disappeared off the face of the earth and she was having to deal with the Paige situation which had drained her completely ever since she had looked through the box of her things. In particular the hoody which she was now wearing. She didn't understand why she had it on, all she knew is that she felt safe with it wrapped around her. It's was like Paige was with her somehow, like she could even hear her voice telling her ' _everything was going to be ok and that she loved her.'_ But Paige wasn't there and that realisation made Emily's heart sink.

The drive to Pennsylvania airport was tedious. But through the tears and consequential road rage Emily finally arrived, plastering on a fake smile as she made her way to arrivals. Emily was happy to see her Grandmother although she was not looking forward to her 1001 questions on how swimming and in particular Paige were doing. Both of which she did not have anymore.

Pushing through the crowd Emily scanned the arrivals board looking for the flight number. There was nothing, no information whatsoever about a flight from Kentucky. The only flights that had landed were from Texas and San francisco. Emily's heart began to race as she thought back to how concerned her mother was.

"Surely she wouldn't" Emily muttered out loud.

Pam was always Paige's number one fan, it seemed as if her mother thought she was the resolution to all Emily's problems. Anytime something went wrong Pam's first words would be "Call Paige" or "Maybe you could visit Paige" but that all stopped when Sara came into the picture.

Surely her own Mother wouldn't set her up like this. A mixture of fear and excitement filled Emily's head as she wondered what she'd say if Paige was there to meet her, if her mother had asked her to come back and fix her, perhaps even to work things out.

She searched frantically through her bag trying to look for her lipstick and pocket mirror. There was a possibility Paige was about to step off that plane and Emily had to remind her of what she left behind. Before she could begin applying the make-up she was interrupted by a hand placed on her shoulder. The lipstick fell to the floor as quickly as her heart dropped. Tears began to stain her was frozen in place. It wasn't until then that she realised her body had been waiting 2 years for this moment. Her Paige was there.

"You came back" She uttered through now slowly falling tears. She was still not ready to turn and face the person behind her.

"Of course i did sweetheart"

A wave of pain crashed through Emily's stomach as a familiar voice rang through her ears. She turned around and was engulfed into a tight embrace.

"Dad?" she muttered quietly, finally raising her arms to return the gesture.

"Surely you weren't expecting someone better than your old man?" Wayne chuckled, pulling away momentarily to place a kiss to the top of his daughters head.

"No, no of course not, I'm just… its been so long." She crashed into her fathers chest once again trying to wipe any signs of tears into his Army jacket.

Emily pulled away only to be held onto by Wayne at arms reach as he examined her face. He looked worried for a moment but it was immediately replaced with a smile as Emily snuggled into his arm and the two began walking to the car.

Aside from the obvious small talk about how college was and how her mom was coping the car journey was awkward to say the least. Unlike Pam, Wayne wasn't one to force a conversation Emily wasn't ready to talk about. She knew Wayne would have been updated on the Sara situation and how she had been recently acting but it wasn't brought up. However she knew something far more painful was about to be.

"Who were you hoping for" Wayne gently spoke not taking his eyes away from the road.

"You know I'm a daddies girl who do you think" Emily chuckled nervously avoiding the examination Wayne was now giving her.

Silence again. Emily switched on the radio to try rid the tension but wasn't prepared for what she heard.

 ** _So this is me swallowing my pride,_**

 ** _Standing in front of you saying, "I'm sorry for that night,"_**

 ** _And I go back to December all the time._**

 ** _It turns out freedom ain't nothing but missing you._**

 ** _Wishing I'd realised what I had when you were mine._**

 ** _I'd go back to December, turn around and make it all right._**

 ** _I go back to December all the time._**

Emily quickly turned the radio back off with a sigh. She rubbed her eyes trying not to think of who the song made her think of.

"I thought you liked Taylor Lorder" Wayne asked confused with the girls obvious discomfort.

"Dad for start its Taylor Lautner, he's the werewolf guy. This is Taylor Swift"

"Ah, well close enough"

Emily just shook her head as they both began to chuckle lightly. Thing's always felt better when her Dad was around, maybe it was because she hadn't seen him in 7 months, but more than that he was a nice distraction from everything that was going wrong at the moment.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Okay, i love you too, we will be about a half hour" Wayne pocketed his phone after a long conversation with Pam reassuring her that they would be back safely and soon.

"What?" Wayne looked over confused at a smiling Emily.

"Do you miss mom?" Emily asked glancing between her dad and the road.

"Of course, I miss you both more than anything." He smiled to himself before continuing.

"I know things have been hard for you right now Emily.. And I'm not pushing you into discussing anything with me"

"But..?" Emily grunted propping her head in the hand that was resting on the window.

"You know after 32 years of marriage there isn't a single day that goes by that i don't think of your Mother and smile"

Emily turned to look at her dad who was now averting his gaze to a spot outside the window.

"I think in life you get one person who just makes you…..Well, you. Once you find them it doesn't matter if 1000 things go wrong you know at the end of the day you still have them to go home to and that just makes everything ok. Im not saying that person can't be Sara… but i'm pretty sure she wouldn't be getting off a plane from San Francisco"

Emily almost swerved off the road hearing her dads words. He had only been with her a couple of hours and had already sussed her out. She opened her mouth looking for the right words to say, maybe try to even deny it but it was no use. He knew Paige was the person she was hoping to get off that plane.

Wayne didn't wait for the car to stop moving before jumping out the door as they pulled up to the house. He bolted up the drive to a sobbing Pam who was immediately lifted into the air and swung around. Emily was quickly added to the hug as she approached them both.

"Lets go out for dinner just the 3 of us!" Wayne suggested finally letting the two go from his firm grip.

"Honey that sounds wonderful but i think it should just be the 2 of us.. Emily has some grovelling to do"

Emily brows furrowed in confusion at her Moms comment. She looked back towards her car and noticed the familiar 4x4 parked across the street. With one final hug she ran upstairs and slammed through her bedroom door.

"Fuck!" Caleb screeched as the door collided with him on the other side.

"Oh my god, Caleb i'm so, so sorry" Emily panicked trying to look for any signs of injury.

"He's fine" Hanna Piped up from the other side of the room barely flinching at her boyfriends screams of pain as she placed a final shirt back into Emily's closet.

"Anyway it should really be me you're apologising…" Before she could continue Emily lunged forward towards Hanna pulling her in for the tightest hug imaginable.

"I've missed you so so much" She whispered into the girls ear as she placed a relieved kiss to the blondes cheek.

"Uhhh….little help over here"

The two pulled away smiling at one another as they looked over to Caleb still clutching his forehead with his hands.

"Jesus christ go get some Ice and while your at it grab me a soda.. Em, you want anything?"

Emily chuckled inwardly, her best friend was back. Now everything was going to be ok. Wasn't it?

After being filled in with the Sara situation, Caleb having to try reel in his girlfriends excitement at the news of the girls breaking up, the three sat down to watch a movie.

"So you just haven't heard from her since?" Hanna asked through a mouthful of popcorn.

"Nope, i even tried to ring her mom but it just said that the number was non-existent" Emily answered staring down at her hands in her lap.

"Well, you're not the only one. All the computers are locked i can't even hack my own hacking system. She was the last person to use them and then she just disappears." Caleb shook his head in frustration.

"Well thats Sara, just full of mystery" Hanna spoke up glancing over to Emily for any sign of a reaction.

"Em' its all going to be ok.. and who knows with you going to Stanford next week Paige might even be up for a little reunion"

Before Hanna could even begin to waggle her eyebrows at her suggestive comment she was interrupted by Caleb choking on his soda.

"Ew! gross go get a towel!" Hanna screamed as she was covered by the splash.

"Your placements at Stanford!" Caleb managed to spew out between coughs.

"Yes, Hanna didn't tell you?" Emily asked confused as she wiped away the soda remains on her face.

Caleb's eyes widened even more as he jumped up and rushed out the room, declaring he'd be right back with a towel.

"Shit, pick up pleeeeeeease" Caleb muttered into his phone which for the 5th time went straight to voicemail.

"Caleb! Hurry the hell up" Hanna shouted from inside the room.

Frustrated Caleb thrusted the phone back into the pocket and grabbed the nearest towel in sight.

The night continued as it always did. Emily and Caleb sat awkwardly avoiding eye contact as Hanna drifted in and out of consciousness waking up momentarily due to her own snores.

Emily knew there was something up with Caleb. Him and Paige were always good friends but he always rooted for them as a couple. She had no idea why he wouldn't hope they'd be in the same state for a chance for them to reconnect. Before she had chance to discuss the matter she was interrupted by Caleb's cell ringing. She watched him gulp inwardly as he silently stood and excused himself from the room.

"DUDE!" He expressed in a hushed but sharp tone.

"Ive been calling you all night, look i need to tell you something..its about E"

"Wait" Paige finally spoke up.

Caleb paused momentarily. He looked through the crack of the door and was relieved to see Emily had left the room presumably to fetch something from the kitchen.

"Me first…i've met someone!"

Caleb's mouth ran dry as he stumbled back to sit on the bottom of the staircase. He ran his hand through his hair as he thought to Emily.

"Caleb are you still there?"

Caleb was stunned. Everything was happening entirely at the wrong time.

"Caleb!"

"Yeh…yeh im still here Paige" He tried to gather his thoughts.

"Jeez i thought you'd be happy" Paige chuckled nervously down the phone.

Caleb shook his head and trying to reign in his hanging mouth.

"Sorry. Thats amazing man, I'm so happy for you." It was the truth. Paige was his best friend and he hated to see her hurt, especially since he couldn't be mad at the person who hurt her.

"Thank's she's really incredible Cal. So what did you have to tell me. Is everything ok, is Hanna ok? Is Emil…."

"Everything's fine, i just wanted to let you know that i spoke to my Mom, she's planning on coming down next week " Caleb winced at the lie squeezing his eyes shut as he heard Paige breathe a sigh of relief.

"Thats great! Glad you're getting on better now.. Hey I've got an incoming call, i'll Skype tomorrow and we will talk more.. love you bro" With that Paige hung up.

Caleb clutched the phone to his chest and exhaled deeply before walking back into the living room.

Hanna was still sleeping when Emily slipped into the kitchen to wash a few dishes. She paused a few times and looked out of the window at the yard that held so many happy memories particularly of her and Paige. They loved to be outside especially at night as they laid on the lawn and watched the stars. Emily could almost feel the warmth of Paige's hand on hers as she let her hands soak in the water.

"Can i help?"

Emily jumped from her thoughts as she looked over to Caleb who was stood arms crossed leaning against the doorway.

"I..I'm almost done" Emily looked back to the dishes as Caleb walked over to grab a towel and began drying the plates.

They stood awkwardly trying not to make eye contact with one another until they both went to speak at the same time. Caleb paused and gestured for Emily to go first.

"I know i hurt her, the whole Alison thing…everything was so messed up But i'm going to make it right. Im sure, more now than ever, that i love her Caleb"

The two glared into each others eyes for a moment, Emily tried to figure out why she saw guilt but she didn't question him. Caleb was the first to break the contact as he picked up another glass from the side and began drying it, inhaling and exhaling a little deeper than before.

"You really messed her up Em. What if she's not the same person she was 2 years ago? What if you get there and you hear something you don't want to hear? Then what Emily?"

Emily was completely caught off guard by the bombardment of questions. She knew herself that if it wasn't for her friendship with Hanna, Caleb would have probably ripped into her a longtime ago about how she had treated Paige.

The silence lasted longer than Caleb carefully folded the towel and with one final look at Emily he threw it onto the side and walked towards the living room door, stopping only to hear Emily finally speak up.

"We're Paige and Emily, no matter what Caleb, were always going to find our way back to each other"

Caleb thought back to how happy Paige sounded and it cut through him like a knife. He looked back over his shoulder his words full of remorse.

"I really hope you're right Emily."


	8. Chapter 8

**AUTHORS NOTE: Hello everybody, it is I! Sweden was cold and rainy and I've literally just defrosted. Work has been super busy, but I'm glad to be home and updating this Fic. I know that it takes me a while to update sometimes but i can promise you (as i have 10000000 times before) that i won't abandon.**

 **1:. I do sometimes leave a Authors note in a review, i have this month to let you guys know i appreciate your concerns but I'm still alive and updating!**

 **2:Also a little review was left (which i appreciate as it is honesty and constructive) Have a read of it in my review comment. I LOVE EMILY i can promise that and the views of her not caring about Paige are Paige's own…and..Ahem….0.5% me :)**

 **3: I cannot stress enough how amazing your reviews and PM's have been. I have had over 7,000 story views in the past months and that is unbelievable to me because this is my first whack at writing. REVIEWS do mean everything to writers. I myself review on every story/chapter i read and i encourage people to do the same as it makes it worth it for Fic writers. So if you do have time to read and you like (constructive also welcome) what you're reading PLEASE just take the time to leave a little review..thank you.**

 **I OWN NOTHING APART FROM SOME CHARACTERS I INTRODUCED IN THIS FIC….ESPECIALLY NOT SARA HARVEY…. DEFINITELY NOT SARA… ew.**

 **Love as always.**

 **RB**

 **Paige**

"Caleb!" Paige yelled, momentarily taking her phone away from her ear to check if the phone had disconnected.

"Yeh…yeh I'm still here Paige" Caleb finally replied. A little less excited than Paige initially anticipated.

"Jeez i thought you'd be happy" She chuckled nervously down the phone.

Although Paige had made so many new friends at Stanford in Rio and the swim team, as well as numerous people from her classes, Caleb was still her very best friend. The two had a deep connection and understanding of each other. Hanna even joked that the identical scars on the two's foreheads were a sign that they were twins separated at birth.

"Sorry. Thats amazing man, I'm so happy for you."

Paige smiled at the comment knowing that the most important person to her approved of the situation.

"Thank's she's really incredible Cal."

With that Paige's smiled faded as 101 possibilities of what could be so urgent invaded her mind. At least 95 of those possibilities involving Emily Fields.

"So what did you have to tell me. Is everything ok, is Hanna ok? Is Emil…." Paige rushed out words as her heart thudded hard against her chest, only to be reassured quickly by Caleb.

"Everything's fine, i just wanted to let you know that i spoke to my Mom, she's planning on coming down next week"

Paige let out the breath she was holding as her heart rate steadied. Fear was overcome with happiness for her friend whose relationship with his mother had seriously declined over the years.

"Thats great! Glad you're getting on better now.."

*BLEEP*BLEEP*BLEEP*

Paige pulled the phone away from her ear and blushed when she noticed the caller ID.

"Hey, I've got an incoming call, i'll Skype tomorrow and we will talk more.. love you bro." She waited a beat for a response, one that never came, before hanging up.

Paige could sense something was up with Caleb, not just from the occasional pauses and stutters that laced his speech but the lack of banter and playfulness she was so accustom to was clearly missing. She made a mental note to bring it up in their next Skype conversation. Right now she just wanted to hear from the girl who has made her heart flutter ever since she met her.

"Hey" Paige immediately plopped her head down on her pillow, toes curling in excitement as she waited to hear the charming tone that graced her ears every night for the past week.

"Well hello there Cowgirl… your phone said you were engaged? I suppose i should say congratulations.. I guess our date didn't go very well?" Jess deadpanned trying to stifle a quiet giggle from escaping her lips.

Paige chuckled once again at another of the girls long list of lame jokes. She could just picture Jess now. A deep crimson shadow covering her delicate cheeks, twirling a piece of hair round her finger like the girl in the movies always did whenever they were talking to their crush.

"Sorry i was just checking in on a friend, not a fiancé i can assure" Paige shot back earning a comical sigh of relief from the other side of the phone.

"The date was beyond perfect Jess, I'm seriously going to have to step up my game" Paige stroked her bottom lip savouring the taste that still lingered.

Cherry chapstick, just like the Katy Perry song. The same song that Rio had set as her ringtone last summer without her knowledge, which of course in true Rio fashion, was revealed when she prank called Paige in the middle of her Foreign Business lecture and the sapphic tune blasted from her pocket.

"Well, it is in my culture. Statistics show that the British are, by far, the most charming breed" Jess's giggle now turning in to a cocky snigger.

"Please, you know what they say, everything is bigger and better in America." Paige blurted out quickly without thinking.

Jess went silent,causing the swimmer to cringe internally, contemplating whether the soccer star may interpret it as a sexual innuendo.

"Well i guess i'll be the judge of that" Jess finally piped up, sounding a little more seductive than the previous flirty banter they were engaging in.

"I guess you will" Paige bit down on her lip listening to the girls slightly heavier breathing. "So is that you agreeing to a second date?"

"I thought you'd never ask."

Paige fist pumped the air and wriggled her legs excitedly at the prospect of seeing the girl again.

They chatted effortlessly for the next couple of hours about everything and anything,stopping only when both of the girls yawns were gradually intensifying.

"We should really get going, we both have practice tomorrow." Paige reluctantly pointed out, feeling slightly saddened that the conversation was soon to come to an end.

"Wow, check you out, already know my schedule." Jess would usually end a statement with a signature cheeky laugh but another yawn quickly washed over her.

"Before you go, please note,just for future reference, that i am positively crap at giving presents."

Paige's brows furrowed in confusion before thinking back to the black box with the ribbon. Something that through-out the incredible date she had completely forgotten about.

"Before you go to sleep just check your porch." Jess smiled nervously biting the corner of her lip.

"You're just full of surprises aren't you." Paige chuckled shifting off of her bed and moving towards her bedroom door. Stopping only to reassure Jess.

"Whatever it is.. I'm sure i'll love it, Thank you"

"Sweet dreams, Paige."

Paige felt butterflies in her stomach hearing the other girl say her name. She was so used to being called 'Cowgirl' that she almost forgot how good her name sounded coming from the other girls mouth.

"Sweet dreams, Jessica."

The last thing Paige heard was a small content sigh before the call ended. She kept the phone to her ear for a second longer before bringing it down to clutch it to her chest.

It was 2am in the morning and Paige was trying her best to sneak downstairs without waking her parents. Their door had always been left slightly open ever since the lighthouse incident. The lighthouse incident which had left Paige suffering with PTSD, this of course led to night terrors in which she woke up in a pool of sweat, screaming Emily's name. The nightmares had slowly deteriorated over the years, but she was still prone to an outburst now and again, particularly when she was under a lot of stress. It was something her Mother always dreaded.

Paige cringed at every squeak of the floorboard. Her house was older but much larger than her home in Rosewood. The grand staircase and twinkling chandeliers made it almost impossible to slip out unnoticed, a talent she was not as gifted at as most people her age, she was far too clumsy to sneak around.

She eventually made it to the door, listening intently for any signs of stirring coming from upstairs, she reached for the doorknob and made her way outside onto her porch. Of course balanced against the grumpy looking gnome Paige bought her dad last christmas was a perfect slender black box, covered with a red silk ribbon and marked prominently with the letter 'P'.

The porch was dimly lit with a purple glow coming form the bug zapper. Paige retreated back until she was sitting on the porch swing. She ran her fingers over the lettering before beginning to untie the ribbon. Inside was a slightly smaller beige box marked 'LINKS LONDON'. Her breath caught when she opened the top to reveal a beautiful silver charm bracelet. It was glamorous yet simple, something that matched Paige's style perfectly. She lifted it off of the small cushion to reveal a single dangling charm. It was dark but Paige laughed out loud when she noticed the shape. A small sterling silver Cowboy boot.

The night grew colder but Paige didn't care. She laid peacefully on her porch swing playing with the dangling charm of her new favourite bracelet. She looked to the night sky, thanking the universe for bringing the new light into her life.

 **Emily**

It was like a cement slab covered her chest and with every day progressing it got slightly heavier. Before Emily knew it she was packing the last of her things for her internship in California.

"Emily hurry the hell up, this car runs on gas, not friendship!" Hanna yelled from outside the girls window.

Clutching her travel pillow under her arm she took a glance at her room for a final time,her eyes fixing on her wardrobe. She checked out her window to see Caleb's palms rubbing his eyes in frustration as Hanna scolded him for forgetting to bring her Beyoncé CD. She returned her gaze back to the wardrobe before setting down her things on her bed and making her way over to the small wooden box. For the umpteenth time she brought the Rosewood sharks hoody to her face sighing in disappointment when she noticed Paige's smell was slowly fading.

"Is there anything else that needs to be taken downstairs." Caleb spoke from the open door causing Emily to jump and drop the hoody to her feet.

Caleb slowly made his way over picking up the clothing, ignoring Emily's wide eyed stare he began to trace his fingers over the 'PM' lettering under the sharks logo.

"I..Uh" Emily racked her brains for an excuse but nothing came to her, she just dropped her head as her eyes began to gloss over.

Nothing needed to be said, Caleb just gulped inwardly and reached over to pull Emily into his chest, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. She wrapped her arms around him as she let out a shaky breath.

*BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP*

The embrace was quickly interrupted as Hanna held her hand down on the horn outside. The two separated, clearing their throats awkwardly before Caleb handed back the sweater.

"Lets go before you fall out with all your neighbours" Caleb laughed as he picked up the rest of Emily's things.

She placed the box back under the wardrobe before turning to the boy.

"Caleb?"

"Yeh?" Caleb turned hands full with various suitcases and pillows.

"Thanks." They nodded simultaneously before heading out the door.

"Oh my god i'm starving when are we stopping for food" Hanna empathised the word starving before shovelling another handful of Chex mix into her mouth.

"Hanna we ate before we left and that was an hour and a half ago." Caleb spoke slowly gripping his hands slightly tighter to the steering wheel.

Even though the whining was similar to a 5 year old asking a frustrated parent ' _are we there yet?'_ Emily was thankful that they had agreed to take her to the airport. Pam and Wayne had left two days prior so that her mom could stay in Texas for the duration that Emily was in Cali.

"Wow Caleb sorry for having an appetite, you know if you're looking for some sickly thin model who only has a carrot stick on the weekend then, Mr you are surely mistaken.. and another thing…"

"Music!" Emily interrupted.

Hanna stopped in her tracks before nodding her head in affirmation to the girl in the front seat, causing Caleb to mouth the word ' _thank you'_ to Emily. This however did not go unnoticed as Hanna leant over to the front and flicked her boyfriend's ear, muttering something about having no respect and not being able to listen to her own music because of a certain someone.

Emily flicked through the endless channels hoping to find something that would subside Hanna's mood. She smiled as the last chorus of Beyoncé's 'Drunk in love' sounded over the speakers. Hanna instantly ripped her gaze away from looking angrily out the window as her and Emily performed the choreography they had conjured up the time they were drunk on Spencer's leaving party..Well, performed to the best of their ability seated in Caleb's car.

Much to Caleb's delight the awful shrieks and bad rapping came to abrupt end as the radio presenters voice drowned out the end of the song.

 _"_ _Now ladies and gentlemen, a new singer/you-tuber on the scene is Nicole Cross and her covers have achieved over a million subscribers. So here she is this is Nicole Cross covering Passenger-Let her go..Enjoy"_

"Ooooooh i love this song, Caleb turn it up!" Hanna shrieked as she pretended to strum out a guitar.

Caleb glanced over to Emily who was already looking, pleading with her eyes for him to shut it off.

Hanna, failed to notice the exchange so took it upon herself to lean over the console and turn the radio up.

"Come on Emily sing with me" Hanna laughed holding an imaginary microphone to Emily's mouth.

"I don't know this one, sorry Han" Emily lied. She smiled softly before resting her head against the window.

 **Staring at the bottom of your glass,**

 **Hoping one day you'll make a dream last**

 **But dreams come slow and they go so fast.**

 **You see her when you close your eyes**

 **Maybe one day you'll understand why**

 **Everything you touch surely dies**

 **But you only need the light when it's burning low**

 **Only miss the sun when it starts to snow**

 **Only know you love her when you let her go**

"Emily.. Em wake up were here" Hanna slowly jolted Emily with both hands as Caleb began the tedious job of unpacking all of Emily's things out of the trunk. She began drifting off again before she was struck in the head by Hanna's travel pillow.

"Come on you big Gay, up you get" The blonde laughed before stepping over Emily things and began walking towards the departure gate empty handed, leaving Caleb as per usual to the grunt work.

"I am going to miss you so, so much" Hanna squeezed Emily into a tight hug. Normally the girl would make a face over her shoulder but Emily gripped on just as hard and buried her face into Hanna's hair.

"Im going to miss you too Hanna Banana" The two chuckled at the old nickname. "Have fun in New York look after Aria."

"Skype me everyday and tell Paige i miss her for me" Both Caleb's and Emily's head dropped once again.

"I will" She said reluctantly forcing a smile to her best friend.

"Bye Caleb." She nodded towards him trying to avoid his concerned glare.

"Bye, Em." Bringing one hand out of his pocket to offer a small wave.

Reading out her seat number Emily was relieved to see she was the only person who had a free seat next to her. She quickly sought out her headphones and adjusted her pillow against the window, looking forward to stretching her legs against the seat beside her.

 _"_ _Ladies and Gentleman this is your captain speaking, just waiting on our final passenger and we should be off shortly"_

A series of groans and mumbles filled the cabin. Emily sighed once again, moving her things in order for the mystery person to sit. Another 5 minutes passed without a sign of the person boarding so Emily once again drifted off to sleep.

"Hello, Ma'am" Emily was once again woken up confused, this time by a stranger.

"Hello, i'm Josephine, but you can call me Jo, everybody does apart from my Mother of course" She outstretched a hand sporting a toothy grin. Jo's eye's were wide, almost childlike and lacked any sign of blinking. She wore an oversized fuzzy rainbow jumper, bootcut jeans and bright pink Doc Marten boots. Her nails were painted..badly, something that Hanna would surely freak out about.

"Emily" Emily finally muttered with barely open eyes before her hand was engrossed in a fiercely gripped handshake.

"Emily, Fields, right? I hope you don't mind i checked the website and saw that you were an intern at Stanford, like me. My mom likes to check who I'm sitting next to so they told me your name and BAM" The girl clapped both of her hands loudly together, making the couple in the next aisle over jump. She finally took a breath before beginning another lengthy sentence.

"What a funny coincidence here you are and we're sitting together, hey how cool would it be if we were rooming together!"

Emily's jaw suddenly dropped open at the thought. Her ears were already ringing from just meeting the girl, she had literally got one word in in the last 5 minutes and she was dreading the prospect of having to spend another 5 minutes let alone 6 weeks with the girl.

Emily's mouth flapped open and closed before a flight attendant interrupted asking if the girls could lower their voices at the other passengers discretion. Emily quickly apologised, hoping the attendant could sense the uncomfortable look on her face and offer her a new seat. Perhaps even in the restroom would be better.

"Yeh that sounds..great." Emily finally replied to Jo with a gulp, holding her headphones in front of her as if to suggest that she would no longer engage in the conversation. But it was no use. She was bombarded with questions and the girls life story for hours until Jo finally tuckered herself out. She laid there head resting on Emily's shoulder, snoring loudly and silently drooling.

Her mind was so preoccupied with the girl next to her that she almost forgot where she was heading..and who she was going to see on the other side.

 _"_ _Ladies and Gentleman this is your captain speaking, we are making our descend into San Francisco an should be arriving in around 15 minutes"_

And there it was. The concrete slab was back and 1000x heavier than ever before. She was going to see her. She was going to see Paige.

 **LIKE IT, HATE IT? PLEASE REVIEW EITHER WAY IT MAKES A MASSIVE DIFFERENCE.**

 **New character Josephine, Sort of a cross between Pandora from Skins and Crazy eyes from OITNB. Let me know what you think! lots of love as always.**

 **Song credit Nicole Cross (Passenger) -Let Her Go**


	9. Chapter 9

**Authors note: Hello! back again sorry this has taken so long unfortunately work has taken over again AND i ended up breaking my arm when i was working away in India!. I am now on the mend and excited to post up the next chapter. Please if you have taken the time to read just drop a little review good or bad.**

 **Love as always,**

 **RB**

* * *

 ** _Emily._**

Ever since her feet touched land Emily felt as if she was surviving on half a tank of oxygen. She struggled to remember how she breathed before. They were short breaths, almost gasps that hurt her chest as she inhaled. She studied her palms that were constantly covered with a thin layer of sweat no matter how many times she wiped them on her pants. She had never found the feeling of safety outside of Paige, not with Sara, not even when her Dad came home. She had been promised in the past that there was nothing the girl wouldn't do to protect her. Now she was closer to Paige than she had been in almost 3 years, but why did it terrify her so much?

Buildings, so many buildings, probably the most prodigious she had ever seen. Emily winced at the pain in her craned neck as she tried to look at the very top of them through the cab window. She had wisely chosen to sit in the front to avoid anymore interrogation from Jo who was currently sprawled out on the back seat. Thankfully, once again, sound asleep.

She was a little overwhelmed by the amount of information Josephine knew about her already. Although these days she and the other girls were still hot topic. Their lives were still documented and brought up if even something as little as a programme on school bullying or 'troubled teens' came on the tv. They were an advert for what not to be at high school. Everyone knew her's, her friends and her families business and Emily truly resented that, but with Andrew still pleading innocent and the court case still ongoing she knew she would have to hold on just a while longer.

Suddenly Emily was pulled from her thoughts, quite literally, as she lurched forwards placing both hands quickly on the dash when the cab came to an abrupt stop.

"$37.80." An amused voice caught her attention as she tried to compose herself. She turned to look at the smug 50 something driver who had been not so subtly checking her out the entire ride over to campus.

"$37 for you" He winked as he wiped off the sweat from his top lip.

Cringing and feeling slightly nauseous Emily reached down to her purse to pull out some cash but was interrupted by an arm from outside the window reaching over her.

"Here keep the change." A guy with short wavy blonde hair dressed in a Stanford tracksuit handed over a 50 dollar bill, before opening the door as two jocks grabbed her stuff from the trunk.

"Thanks, but i..i can do that" Emily stuttered, waving off the boys attempts as she got out of the car.

"Emily Fields is it?" The first guy looked up from ticking the name on the clipboard and outstretched a hand towards Emily, she silently nodded and accepted the gesture.

"Brad Connor, I run the Sports psychology department. Please don't be fooled by my childlike appearance. I am a fully qualified faculty member, not a student." He sported a toothy grin finally allowing Emily to ease up a little as she smiled back.

"It's great to meet you Mr Connor, this is Jo….." Emily paused when she looked towards the back of the cab in confusion.

"…sephine." She continued in an almost whisper.

Brad's brows furrowed as he ducked down to follow Emily's gaze inside the window.

"Errrrr… your bags name is Josephine?" He looked the towards the girl with a puzzled look. The Driver looked just as bewildered as to when and where the girl must have gotten out, but chose to stay quiet, further adding to how crazy Emily must have come across.

"No my.. Uh.. friend, she must of gotten out when i was checking out all this." She gestured towards the campus with both arms, she chuckled nervously and awkwardly fixed the fallen hair behind her ear.

"Wow, must have been a long flight" He smirked, shrugging off the situation before turning his back and picking up the remainder of Emily's things. "Well the facilities are pretty spectacular even if am a little biased!"

Emily's eyes darted to the back of the cab once more before she tapped the roof and watched it, still confused, drive off into the distance.

"I actually graduated here, and the thought of leaving the place.." He looked up to the building and smiled. "It just didn't feel right..so here i am."

Emily turned quickly to follow him towards the buildings.

"Now i know you're probably tired but I'm going to need you to help me out today. The girls soccer team have quarter finals next week, they're are a rowdy bunch but i believe its good to be thrown into the deep end straight away..and I'm a psychologist so therefore I'm always right." He laughed at his own joke before stopping in front of a large building. This caused Emily, who was far to preoccupied taking everything in to even listen, to bump straight into the back of him.

"You're still on Philly time huh?" He laughed once again as Emily's cheeks reddened.

"Well this is your dorm for the summer, your stuffs already in your room. Chill out a bit and i'll see you in the sports department in.." He glanced down at his watch momentarily " Lets say..an hour?"

He opened the door and gestured her inside before giving her a nod and tapping his watch.

Emily glanced down at the set of keys in her hand. 'Room 138a' she walked along the row of dorms until she reached the right one and made her way quickly inside.

She finally let out the breath she had been holding ever since she got off the plane. It was a shaky, full of nerves and fear breath, but it didn't hurt anymore. There was a good chance that Paige had walked the exact same path that Emily had walked just now and the thought of that alone terrified her.

2 and a half years, thats the amount of time it had taken to feel as if she was finally alive again. The air felt lighter and she felt the same warmth that took over her all those times that Paige's presence surrounded her. She wasn't home, not technically, but she thought of the reason why she was so in love with Paige, why she still is. Where ever Paige was felt like she was there. She was felt like she was finally home.

* * *

 ** _Paige._**

"You know if you keep kissing me like that neither one of us are going to get to practice" Jess spoke between kisses as Paige pushed her harder against her bedroom door and plunged her tongue deeper into the soccer players eager mouth.

"I" *Kiss* "Don't" *Kiss* "Care" Paige finally replied whilst moving her lips to kiss Jess's collar bone causing the other girl to shudder.

The two had been entirely inseparable from the time they first met, practically going on dates every single night, mixing it up with going out to dinner and staying in and _not_ watching a movie in Jess's dorm. They both knew things were moving a little fast, they had even discussed the prospect but they both agreed pacing felt natural. They were so comfortable in each others company that it felt that there was no need for boundaries or to put up any walls. Like Paige, Jess had a troublesome relationship previously but they chose not to question one and other.

Paige secretly hoped she wouldn't have to bring Emily up ever. She loved the little bubble the two had created. She hadn't thought much about Emily recently, but when she did her heart hurt and her eyes felt heavy. Jess took that away and with that power she knew her feelings would only get stronger for the girl.

Paige felt her knees give way as Jess pushed her on top of the bed and laid her body down on top of her, never pulling away from the kiss that was gradually getting more and more heated. Paige's hands tangled in Jess's hair as she trailed kisses down the swimmers jawline, thighs absentmindedly pressed into places that were growing more needy by the second.

"You're incredibly beautiful, do you know that?" Jess spoke as she pushed her lips further into the crook of Paige's neck. She was desperately trying to suppress the moans that were surely escaping as Paige pushed her bare thigh further into the place she needed most. This was definitely the right time for them both to be wearing track shorts.

Paige pulled away briefly to stare into those eyes she had become so accustom to. She studied the girls face. Jess was the complete opposite to Emily. She had never seen eyes so blue, they reminded her of the water. Clear and so much depth that you could almost drown in them if you stared for too long. Her skin like Emily's was darker but Jess's was the kind that went away when the sun did. For years Paige ruled out the possibility of ever finding someone more beautiful than Emily, someone who she was more sexually attracted to, but with her brain working on autopilot she found the answer as she began working her fingers beneath Jess's shirt. Jess simply nodded as they both stared into each others darkened eyes. She was definitely sexually attracted to her. And the heat coming off of Jess proved the feelings were mutual.

"Paige! are you up there Honey?" a voice cut through the air like a missile.

The two's eyes widened in panic as Paige instinctively flipped Jess off of her and sent the girl crashing to the floor on the far side of the bed.

"Yes Mom, in here!" She frantically combed her hair in panic with her fingers and straightened out her top silently praying that the conversation she was just about to have with her mother would be a short one.

Soft giggles coming from the girl under her echoed through the room as the footsteps to Paige's door came closer.

"Sweetheart, we're leaving at 6" Caroline pushed the door open with her foot whilst fixing the diamond earring to her ear. Paige gulped as she heard Jess bang her head on the bottom of the bed frame.

"What was that?" Her mother asked in confusion tilting her head to look past Paige.

"It was, uh, me" Paige chuckled nervously as her mother sent a questioning glare her way.

"Right… well will be back tomorrow around 9, theres money in the kitchen and leftovers in the fridge, call me if you need anything" She walked over and placed a kiss to Paige's forehead before turning to and leaving the room.

"Woah, that was a close one" Jess grinned in triumph before leaning up to kiss Paige.

"Oh and Paige?"

Paige pushed Jess's head back down as her Mother poked her head around the door once again.

"Maybe the pair of legs under the bed would like to come to dinner one night, introduce us properly" Her mother said barely holding in the chuckle.

"That would be lovely Mrs McCullers, thank you" Jess outstretched a thumbs up over the side of the bed as Paige buried her beet red face into the pillow.

"I look forward to it, Paige you have practice get going or you'll be late" Carol laughed once again.

"Got it, thanks Mom" Paige muttered with her head still engulfed in the pillow as she cringed internally.

* * *

 ** _Emily._**

Emily looked on in horror at the group of girls huddled in the small room of the classroom. They were animals. Laughing, joking, even two play fighting in the corner. She felt out of her depth.

"Hello sorry I'm late" Emily startled as she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"You must be the new psychologist?" The girl spoke in a charming accent, maybe Australian she couldn't tell.

"I really hope you can sort out these bunch of baboons the only way i can tame them is with food and my bank balance cant take it much longer" The girl laughed as she followed Emily's gaze inside.

"Im Emily, Fields" Emily smiled as she reached out a hand to the blue eyed beauty.

"Jess Whitehall, team captain" The girl smiled, she was absolutely gorgeous, Emily might have even flirted with her if Paige didn't occupy her every thought.

"You have your hands full i see with these girls" Emily chuckled once again looking to through the window particularly at the girl who had a smaller girl in a headlock.

"You could say that." Jess let out a hearty laugh. "Im going to head inside good luck, you'll do great." She squeezed Emily's forearm in reassurance as she headed inside the classroom to the chorus of wolf whistles and cheers.

"Right Emily, you have you notes, lets go" Brad emerged from behind opening the door and shuffling Emily inside. The room went quiet as soon as the two entered. The girls scurried like cockroaches quickly back to their seats.

"Good afternoon Ladies." Brad spoke and then turned his attention to Jess in the front row.

"Miss Whitehall nice of you to join us."

Jess's cheeks reddened slightly as the rest of the girls giggled under their breaths.

"Sorry Sir. Car trouble" She replied back giving him the signature smile that could melt butter.

"Yes _McCar_ trouble, Sir" One of the girls sniggered causing the rest of the girls to erupt in fits of laughter.

Emily didn't quite catch on to the play on words, putting it down to an inside joke within the team, something she knew very well about from her high school days, especially the inside jokes she shared with Paige.

" _Ha-ha_ Soph. Very funny, i hope you'll find time to laugh when you're puking out of your nose from doing suicides later on tonight." Jess quipped back causing the girl to sink lower into her chair. Jess turned to address the rest of the team in a stern tone.

"Miss Fields and Mr Connor are here to help us, now show some respect or you'll all be joining Sophie on the field tonight" The room went quiet as Jess gave them all an icy glare, she finally shifted her attention back to the front and gave Emily a thoughtful smile.

* * *

"And that concludes todays session all i can say is good luck, stay calm and put everything you have learnt into practice." Brad concluded by clapping his hands together as the girls all began to collect their notes and shove their way out of the door.

"Great job today Emily" He patted Emily's back as he collected his own notes and made his way out of the class.

"He's right you know. They all seemed to actually shut up when you talked, never seen anything like it before" Jess piped up from behind Emily who had just realised they were the only two left in the room. She smiled at the girl once again and thanked her with a nod as she breathed a sigh of relief. Her first day was over. No hiccups and thankfully no sign of Paige just yet.

Jess opened the door and gestured Emily to walk out first . Emily looked towards the soccer player to thank her failing to notice the person coming into the room from the other side. She practically face planted them and dropped her notebook. Without looking the other girl instinctively bent down to retrieve it.

"Sorry ill get it!" That familiar voice that haunted Emily's dreams for 3 years.

The smell of CK1 and chlorine.

"Holy fuck" A tall dark skinned girl behind the girl uttered in pure disbelief as she stared Emily in the eye and grabbed hold of the mystery girls arm.

"What?" She looked confused by the girls sudden reaction. "It was an accide…" she stopped immediately as she turned to face Emily.

"Paige?"

And then everything went **black**.

* * *

 **OOOOOOOOP! Please REVIEW! Love hearing from you all!**

 **RB**


	10. News

Hey guys,

im sorry this is a disappointing update.

I recently had a spike of interest coincidentally since Paige returned to PLL.

As you can guess life really caught up with me and I was unable to update as much as I would like.

I went over this story this morning and it really upset me that I had forgotten about it.

I feel I have grown as a writer since my last update and this is still a fandom I love wholeheartedly.

Therefore (and I hope some people will still remember this story!) I will be updating within a week

thanks for all your pms and sorry I couldn't write this sooner.

RB


End file.
